First published 1984

This edition first published 1988

O DAVID TAME 1984

to the,seventh angel
to the two olive trees
and to all who will sing the new song

Alln'ght~re~erved.No pan of t h r ~book may be reproduced or utilized in any formor by

any meam, electronic or mechanical, ancfudz?tgphotocopying,recording or by any
information storage and retnevd system, without pennirsion in wnting from the
Publisher

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

Tame, David
The secret power of music. - 2nd ed.
1. Music - Psychology
I. Tide
781'.15
ML3830

ISBN 0-85030-752-X
The Aquanirn Press ispart of the
Thorsons Publishing Group, Welhgborough,Northamptonshire,
NN8 2RQ England
Printed in Great Britain by
Woolnough Bookbinding Limited,
Irthlingborough, Northamptonshire

The good is one thing; the sensuously pleasant another. These

two, differing in their ends, both prompt to action. Blessed are they
that choose the good; they that choose the sensuously pleasant miss
the goal.
Both the good and the pleasant present themselves to men. The
wise, having examined both, distinguish the one from the other. The
wise prefer the good to the pleasant; the foolish, driven by fleshly
desires, prefer the pleasant to the good.
- Katha Upanishad

Contents
A c~nowledgements

11

verture: Music and its Power

13

usic as a power - music, the individual and society - music creates order out of chaos
as in music, so in l$; Music as a Mould for Society - the protest of Confucius;
sound, Music. and the Wisdom of the Ancients - the walls of Jericho destrqed by
the scientific use of sound - music for good and music for evil - the ancients were more
aware than we of the unseen causes behind all outer events - music and moraliy; The
Hidden Side of Music - a personal experience of the author; Primal Vibration music as a manrfestation of the O M ; Music and the Twentieth Century; Music and
Materialism - the modern viewpoint on music - Aquarian Age people have not yet
rejected anti-Aquarian Age music - an outline of this book.

1.

The Ancient Wisdom: Music in China

33

Music and Morality - music as an energy formula - the beliefs of Confucius; Music
d Spirituality - the stoty of Master Wen of Cheng - the allegory behind the story rli.sit from the celestials; The O M in China; Astrology and the Twelve Cosmic
) n a - one Cosmic Tonefor each lpdiacal month; Sound Above and Sound Below

sound a manifestation of the twelve Cosmic Tones - music and ceremony Chinese music transposed in accordance with astrological gcles; The Mysticism of
Music - musical notes as an outpouring of the One Vibration - the subtlety of the
iiuidual notes - the mystical basis of Oriental monotone instrument.^; Music and
actical Magic - gigantic orchestras to release vast quantities of Cosmic Sound;
usic and the T'ai Chi -the forces of yin and yang in Chinese music; The Concept
the Logos in Chinese Music - Cosmic Sound associated with Cosmic Consciousness
Chinese emperors as incarnations of the Word - the huang chung; O f Times and
{cles; Of Music and Modes - astrology, Cosmic Sound and earthly rtmtr - thr
ertial ynphony - to align earthly music with universal principles; T h e Hulrrrg Ch141g
;IS the Foundation of Civilization - standardiatron of 1~7~~qbtt
and mtvrtttrri
rl<~~rrnrcnt
with the One Tone; The Eternal Quest - the prrilr offiw tm~;r.c~tr,~tr~
k~lrl!:

-- audible

'

T H E SECRET P O W E R O F MUSIC

CONTENTS

the search for p6ection; Rigidity vs. Innovation: The Cwcial Dilemma - the
dangers ofboth s t a p i o n and anarchy - the Chinese middle way; n e Mysticism of
Music and Numba - note-ratios - the sign$cances of1,2,3, 12, / and 7; Mode
Mood - the 'biu!4m band', The Legendary Origins of Chinese Classical Music L f i v j v e legendary monarchs; The Historical ER - Prince Tsai-Yu discovms q w l
temperamm; The Loss of the Logos - decline and falL - disappearance of the
'hi& band'; The Use of Sound in Modern China - subject.rfir the no& opera
- anti-Western death-chants.

Consciousness - music is the Iangrri!yr o f languages; Motives For Music - Milk

Jager, "movingafter the minds' - tI,r M rrrnas and the Papas deliberately cause a riot the exalted ideals ofthe classical compttrt; Music Therapy: The Universal Cure? music therapy in histoy - music rhrrt~proday - musicfor the handicapped - 'evny
illness is a musical problem'; Music and the Stnlcture of Society - music and
langwge - music and the perception o f rinrr - does tonality encode the industrial worldview? - the creative role of music in thc .Soviet Union di,rpnt~eddialectic materialism;
The Tonal Side of the American Rcvolurion.

2.

The Twentieth Century: The 'New Music'

72

The Idealism of Pre-Twentieth-Cenmrj Music - the spiritual motives behind the

music of Liqt - Mo~artand Masonry; The Revolution of Technique - the expansion ofhannony; The Revolution into Materialism - 'hwiontdly'-directed music the 'new music' excludes God and moral purpose - Mussorgsb and his. 'bitter . . .
language o f truth' - Tchaikovsb, over-emotionalism and de music of d+at; Debus~
Points the - or a - Way - the poet of moonlight and of velvet shadows;
Impressionism vs. Expressionism; The Serialists - tonality rmounced; Enter: The
Commandos - Charles Ives - his music 'to beplnyedas not nice'; Igor Stravinsky The Rite of Spring - Ye shall know them 15 theirjuits; Ballet Michanique and
After - Edgar Varbe - Deserts and P o h e E l e c t r ~ n i ~ u-eSilver Apples of the
Moon - Bach is 'switched on'; Music Becomes Caged - John Cage: 'a ping
pal$ed ly a thud' - indetminary in music - antimuszc and perverted Z m LaMonte Young, David Tudor, Steve Reich - anti-theatre and anti-dance; A Visitor
From Sirius Stockhausen; The B.F. Skinner Show, or Music to Get Under Your
Skin - rock 'n' roll hot pants; Some Further Advances in the Art - the Water
Whistle; Computer Music- GIGO - uocoding: the uoice of 'Luciano Jagtrl;
Courageously Exploring Backwards; Assessing the Avant-Garde; What is thc
Purpose of Music? - Darwzni sugeestion - music aciording to M I T - .Ytephn
L

Halpm: 'reIuxing' into the New Age - Truth, Beau9 4 Goodness: separating the
three Sisters - eternal standards a d the double-minded man; Roll Over Beethoven;
Roll Over Man - composing compuiers - mechanical music teachws; Emptv Scan .
,
the public vote with their fief; Twentieth-Century Traditionalists - Vaughan
William - Holst.
~

3. Assessment: Music. Man and Society

136

Music and the physical Body - music aflects the brain, the blood-pressure, the heartrate and the muscles - music as a sedatizr or stimulant - musicogenL epilepg - the
dangws ofloud music - the physiological effects of different tmrpos; Music and Plants:

rock Some Preliminary Findings - Bach accelerates plant grobgth - death

objectively good and oeectively bad music - music changesplants' chromosomes;Music.
Mind and Emotion - all experiences, including music, affect man; character; Music
as an Encoder; Music as a Communicator and Multiplier of Statcs of

4. The Ancient Wisdom : Music in India

170

Intoning the OM - OM and the huang chung: O M - rlibration, the rource +he
Creation - the Trinity in Hinduism - ahata and anahata; Thc Mystical Basis of
Music and Speech - the Trinity in music - the prima9 ofthe voice - the e~oteric
importance ofchanting; Music and Spirituality -yogi musicians; Name and Form names are key-note formulas - bija mantras; Indian Music and its Appreciation Indian and Western music compared - The Raga - the 22 intervals o f the scale over-rigidity VS. anarchy: the Indian solutim - structure of the raga; Music and
Indian Civilization - differences between north and south - the entrance of Westernsole 'Pop'.

j. The Twentieth Century: Jazz and the Blues - Their Nature

187
and Origin
Tonal Anarchisrs Through thc Ages - the decline of Greece; Roots - voodoo and the
slave trade - early ragtime and blues - Buddy Bolden - the terms yax' and 'rock' 'n'
roll' rgeweed to the Sex act; Resistance - media reactions - Cyril Scott on jan; 'My
Daddy Rocks M e With One Steady Roll' (- The Lyrical Content of the Blues -)
lyrics of hard sex - s w l i g veiled Ly double-meanings; Jazz 'Arrives' - from
whwehouse to speateag - the Big Band; The Effects of the Music; Offsprings of
the Jazz Rhythm; The Modern Era - tbe intellecmliation o f j a x - a pophetic
starementfim the 1940s - About Rock.

6. Assessment: The Physics of the OM

205

OM and the Unity of Crcation Myths; 'And God Said . . .'-the meatit~tpowerof
sound allegorically desnibed in Gtne.ri.r - the seven Tones of Creation; Egyptian
Genesis - Creation 5 thought and sound - EgVptian bija mantras - the mysticism of
the voice; The Word Made Flesh - the Incarnation; Genesis Now; The Work of
Ernst Chladni and Hans Jenny - Chladniplates - the tonoscope; The Song of the
Atom - matter = enerp = oibration; The Vocal Range of the One Singcr electromagnetism and wave-Ffqumcy; The Mysticism of Colour - the colour octave;
The Imminence of the Word - the OM in Tibetan music; Harmonic Ratios and
Proportions in Nature - universal harmonics in pbsics, chemisty and biology;
Harmonic Principles in the Natural Psycho1ogj of Man - Ur-song; Towards a

Overture :

Music and its Power

Our subject is not music as an abstract art, but music as a force
which affects aU. who hear it. Music - not as entertainment only, but
s a literal power.
Whenever we are within audible range of music, its influence is
laying upon us constantly - speeding or slowing, regularizing or
~rregularizingour heartbeat; relaxing or jarring the nerves; affecting
the blood pressure, the digestion and the rate of respiration. Its
effect upon the emotions and desires of man is believed t o be vast,
and the extent of its influence over even the purely intellectual,
mental processes is only just beginning to be suspected by
researchers.
Moreover, to affect the character of the individual is to alter that
basic atom or unit - the person - from which all of society is constructed. In other words, music may also play a far more important
role in determining the character and direction of civilization than
most people have until now been willing to believe. The powers of
music are multi-faceted, sometimes uncannily potent, and by no
means, as yet, entirely understood. They can be used or misused.
'Ve forsake the conscious, constructive use of these powers t o our
wn loss. W e ignore these powers at our peril.
Though little thought is given today as to the meaning or
lllnction of music within society, the civilizations of former times
were usually very conscious of music's power. This was especially
true of the pre-Christian cr.. In fact, the further back in time we
look, the more people are found to have been aware of the inherent
owers locked within the heart of all music and all sound.
It has been easy for modern man, born and raised within a
~ciety permeated with the philosophy of materialism and
tductionism, to fall into the trap of regarding music to be a nonjsential and even peripheral aspect of human life. And yet such a

14

MUSIC AND ITS POWER

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

viewpoint would have been regarded by the philosophers of antiquity to be not only irrational, but also, ultimately, suicidal. For from
ancient China to Egypt, from India t6 the golden age of Greece we
find the same: the belief that there is something immensely fundamental about music; something which, they believed, gave it the
power to sublimely evolve or to utterly degrade the individual
psyche - and thereby t o make or break entire civilizations.
Something immensely fundamental about music
It was exactly this that Pythagoras was driving a t in his research
through which he discovered that all of music could be reduced to
numbers and mathematical ratios - and that the entire universe and
all phenomena therein could also be explained in these same terms of
the same particular numbers and mathematical ratios which were
found in music.
Pythagoras' understanding of music was far more than a merely
materialistic, academic one, and such an understanding is lamentably
rare today. Yet we discover something of this timeless flame of
ageless wisdom preserved in that small minority of musicians who
still today have combined academic knowledge and the practical
experience of music with a genuine and earnest inner spiritual
development.
Few would disagree that such a person is the much-beloved
musical personality, Yehudi Menuhin. And we find a deep and truly
Pythagorean flash of insight in the opening sentences of his book,
Theme and Variations. Here, this great contemporary violinist has
expressed the inner meaning of the tonal arts in terms so pointedly
true, and yet so all-embracing in their truth, that they are food for a
great deal of careful thought:

...

'

Music creates order out of chaos; for rhythm imposes unanimity

upon the divergent, melody imposes continuity upon the disjointed, and harmony imposes compatibility upon the incongruous.
Thus a confusion surrenders to order and noise t o music, and as
we through music attain that greater universal order which rests
upon fundamental relationships of geometrical and mathematical
proportion, direction is supplied to mere repetitious time, power
to the multiplication of elements, and purpose to random association.
W e co~lldstop right there. W e almost need to go no further. These
words of Yehudi Menuhin render a core explanation of the entire
ancient-world conception of the power of music; of why and how

1>

111cancients believed that music could affect man and civilization.

'I'llc ancicnts were convinced that music could become internalized

I,y the individual; the music influencing, as it were. the rhythm of

111rn'sthoughts, rhe melody of man's emotions, and the harmony of
his bodily health and manner of movement. In all these ways, music
was thought t o determine the manner of our thoughts and actions.
'4s in music, so in life - this one timeless axiom contains the
central concept upon which entire civilizations once founded almost
(.very aspect of their society. And upon thls same seed concept
generations of kings, ~ r i e s t sand philosophers based the whole work
o f the long span of their lives.
As in music, so in life,
An axiom which declares that consciousness and all of civilization
is shaped and moulded according to the existing style or styles of
~~lusic.
A shattering concept indeed! When one ponders upon its
i l ~ ~ ~ l i c a d o that
n s : music magnetizes society into conformity with
ilsclf

...

Could it actually be true that music tends to mould us, in our

~ h o u ~ hand
t s our behaviour patterns, into conformity with its own
itlnate patterns of rhythm, melody, morality and mood?
Irllmediately, one's mind turns towards specific examples: styles of
l~rusicof which we know, and the society or sub-culture which is to
I)c found around them. What of the music of today? The society of
t ~ ) d a y Clearly
?
the above axiom, should it prove to be valid, is one
Ir;iught with significance for modern civilization.

MUSIC AS A MOULD FOR SOCIETY

Whenever, at any time during the course of his life, modern man has
lislcned to music, has he really known the meaning and the implicalions of what he was doing? Certainly not according to the ancient
T~l~ilosophers.
W e may take ancient China for example:
Each year, in the second month, Emperor Shun could be found
journeying eastward in order t o check upon his kingdom, and to
cnsure that everything was in order throughout the vast land. Yet he
did not d o so by auditing the account books of the different regions.
Neither by observing the state of life of the populace, or by receiving petitions from them. Nor by interviewing the regional officials
it1 authority. No, by none of these methods. For in ancient China
thcre was considered to be a much more revealing, accurate and
scientific method of checking on the state of the nation. According
I O the ancient Chinese text, .Shu King, the Emperor Shun went
:~lloiitthrough the different territories and . .tested the exact pitches o f
//~i-h
notes of music.

16

T H E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Back in his palace, if the Emperor wished to monitor the

efficiency of his central government, what did he do? Get expert
advice on policy making? Review the economy, or the state of
popular opinion?
The Emperor was not ignorant of any of the above methods, and
at times may have taken recourse to all of them. But most important
of all, he believed, was t o listen to, and check, the five notes of the
ancient Chinese musical scale. He had the eight kinds of Chinese
musical instruments brought before him and played by musicians.
Then he listened t o the local folk songs, and also to the tunes which
were sung in the court itself, checking that all this music was in
perfect correspondence with the five tones.
Primitive superstition? Certainly Emperor Shun did ,not believe
so. According to the philosophy of the ancient Chinese, music was
the basis of evevthiwg. In particular they believed that all civilizations are shaped and moulded according to the kind of music performed within them. Was a civilization's music wistful, romantic?
Then the people themselves would be romantic. Was it strong and
military? Then the nation's neighbours had better beware. Furthermore, a civilization remained stable and unchanged as long as its
music remain unchanged. But to change the style of music which
people listened to would inevitably lead to a change in the very way
of life itself.
If Emperor, Shun, on his travels about the kingdom, had
discovered that the instruments of the different territories were all
differently tuned from each other, then he would have considered it
a foregone conclusion that the territories themselves would begin to
(if they did not already) differ from each other. They might even
lose their unity and begin to squabble among themselves unless the
tuning was at once corrected and made uniform from one place to
another. And if the music he heard performed in the villages had
begun to become vulgar and immoral, then the Emperor would have
expected immorality itself to sweep the nation unless something was
done to correct the music.
A graphic account has come down to us from the time of Confucius which shows the very real and practical importance the wise
men of China placed upon music. A gift of femalc musicians was
sent by the people of Ts'e to the kingdom of Loo. Confucius himself
protested to Ke Huan, the ruler of Loo, that these foreign musicians
should not be received, lest their alien, and possibly sensual, music
influenced the native musicians of the kingdom. Confucius believed
that if the music of the kingdom was altered, then the society itself

MUSIC AND ITS POWER

17

would alter, and probably not for the better. Unfortunately we

I not know today entirely how the episode ended, and what effect
r foreign music did have on the kingdom. But what we d o know
I llat despite the protestations of the legendary moral philosopher.
I- Huan did receive the females, and no court was held for three
~ y swhile the Emperor and his government availed themselves of
c sight and sound of the exotic foreign performers. S o much for
c government's sense of responsibility to the kingdom! But Conc , i u s ? The famous philosopher was absolutely uncompromising on
issue. The same level of importance which politicians today
o d d attach to militay or economic matters, Confucius attached to
1.
issue of the kingdom's music. H e was certain and firm in his
oral convictions, and was prepared to back them up to the hilt.
clusing to listen to the music, he stormed out of the court in protest.
I lr had heard the alien music, and he had seen the writing on the
w;~ll.H e knew.
And just what was it that he knew? Along with all of the other
l.cit philosophers of his land, Confucius believed there t o be a
iddm significance to music which made it one of the most impor1111 things in life, possessing potentially tremendous power for good
01.cvil. And we discover the same basic beliefs regarding music in
ril.l~lall~
every advanced civilization of antiquity It was the same in
Mesopotamia. The same again in cultures as far apart as India and
t irrcce. These various peoples of the past were in agreement in their
uirwpoints upon music to a most striking degree. Music was not
~rrnccivrdby any of them, as it is conceived today, as being merely
,111 intangible art form of little practical significance.
Rather. they affirmed music t o be a tangible force which could be
lied in order to create change, for better or worse, within the
I llrracter of individual man; and, what was more important, within
rociety as a whole. In fan, though today we still can hear people
\,waking of the 'magic of music', the ancients used the phrase far
Illore literally, for music was men believed by them to be capable of
c.ffeaing change upon matter itself.

SOUND, MUSIC AND THE WISDOM OF THE

ANCIENTS
A famous example of tonal magic is the story of Joshua's destruction
of'the walls of Jericho. According t o the biblical account,' Jericho. a
city rampant with evil, had closed its gates and prcpared to withr~:mdthe seige of righteous Joshua and his force. But when Joshua
Il.~darrived near to the city he met a strange man, who called

18

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

~',,'~!
i 11
8

Il i ~ ~ , ~ ~ !
Ill1 1
11
'11

illi

'l

1'
I

1
I

,'I,'l/

, I ' l

11

1,l

ll' i 1

I! ,

~ : ' 1 ~ 1

l,

ill

l;
1I

1;
1

.'l

himself the captain of the hosts of the Lord, and who told Joshua
how to destroy the mighty walls of Jericho through the use of sound
produced in sequences of seven. Following the instructions, Joshua's
legions marched around the city, headed by seven priests blowing
seven trumpets of rams' horns. The rest of his men Joshua cornmanded to remain absolutely silent, uttering not a word. Once. they
went around the city. And again on the next day. And the same for
a total of seven days. But on thc seventh day they circled the city
.seven times, and on this occasion Joshua told his people to shout
along with the sound of the trumpets. This they did - and the walls
of Jericho, according to the account, fell down flat, the city then
being stormed and taken.
Of course, as our modern materially-minded friends can tell us,
the story must be only superstition; a mere legend.
- Except that the ruins of ancient Jericho have been unearthed,
and it has been found that the walls apparently did at some stage
collapse, falling outward,
But still, the modern scholar tells us, there must obviously be
some perfectly natural explanation.
- Yes, WC reply, a natural explanation. Certainly it must have
been natural. And yet in order to fully understand the account,
perhaps we need to wait a little longer, for science to progress a little
further in the field of acoustics . .
While the people of ancient times certainly did believe that sound
was capable of such spectacular feats, they were nevertheless equally
concerned with the more usual effects of sound and music - upon
the human psyche and upon society. If a civilization's music was in
the hands of the evil or ignorant, the ancients believcd, it could lead
the civilization only to an inevitable doom. But in the hands of the
illumined, music was a tool of beauty and power which could lead
the way for an entire race into a golden age of peace, prosperity and
brotherhood.
T o the major civilizations of antiquity, intelligenth-organized
sound constituted the highest of all the arts. And more, for they also
believed music - the intelligent production of sound through musical
instruments and the vocal cords - t o be the most important of the
sciences, the most powerful path of religious enlightenment, and the
very basis of stable, harmonious government. More than anything
else, however, the great thinkers of antiquity emphasized the
powerful effect of music upon the character of man. Since music
seemed to hold such sway in determining the morality of people, it
was a subject which none of the great moral philosophers could

..

MUSIC AND ITS POWER

I,:II~IT.

Aristotle, for one, wrote that :

... emotions of any kind are produced by melody and rhythm;

by music a man becomes accustomed t o feeling the right

I l~rrefore

I-l~~otions;
music has thus power t o form character, and the
v;~t.iouskinds of music based on the various modes, may be
tlistinguished by their effects on character - one, for example,
working in the direction of melancholy, another of effeminacy;
11nc encouraging abandonment, another self-control, another
enthusiasm, and so on through the s e r i e ~ . ~
Ill ,I 11 Plato and Aristotle discuss the moral effects of music in several
11 I heir major works.
Music and morality. Is there a connection in reality? Certainly
I I I idea
~ that music exerts an influence - and a ~ o w e r f uone
l - over
1111.character of m m persisted on a widespread scale beyond the
I 1r11ruf Christ, through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, and
I I ~ I O the last century. The concept that music affects character was
111c onr great inspiring force behind the creative lives of the great
a I.~\\icdl
and romantic composers. I t is clear from what we know of
1 11r.ircharacters that each of them, motivated by an earnest desire to
*.c .rrfr ;md spiritualize humanity, saw their music as one of the most
I ~ t , w ~ . rmeans
f ~ ~ l posrihle of influencing the consciousness and direcI I I , I I of the human race. Wars and politicians come and go, but
11illsicabides indefinitely, never failing t o affect the minds and hearts
1 1 1 ,111 who hear it.
As Andrew Fletcher, the writer and orator, stated in the Scottish
I ' ~rliamentof 1704: 'I knew a very wise man who believed that if a
111.lewere permitted to make all the ballads, he need not care who
. , l ~ r IIIICI make the laws of a nation'.
It can easily be seen, then. that the subject of music and its
\ M !-a\il~le
psychological and societary influences is anything but an
~lr\cr,ice,theoretical one. If music can be used t o exert
l~iil~~rnces
of tither a negative or a beneficial n a m e over us, then we
I I . I ~ I better know about it! What damage might certain kinds of
~llliaichave already imposed upon our
without our
I r.~liringit? What opportunities might there be for us to take the
I I I T C C ~ kind of music an;
use it from now onwards in order to
11 r clrratc our own mental and spiritual evolution? Clearly, these
c~~~c*\tions
are of importance to cach and every one of us. Virtually
i ~ r ~ h listens
o d ~ t o music in one form or another. When we speak
I #I
'r11,ln' or of 'the listener' in the pages ahead - that also means you

,111

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I I I C ! Fcw could claim t o be free from any possible influence

wllic11 music may exert, directly or indirectly.
... Perhaps none could, if we are to accept the ancients'
viewpoint. For in addition t o music's more direct effects upon man
- the psychological effects of its audible melodies and rhythms therc was also t o be taken into account music's second, yet more
extensive and more potent, power. A mystic power this, a force
inaudible and invisible, and a force only understandable in terms of
the ancient philosophy and its distinctly non-materialist basis.
.rrrtl

THE HIDDEN SIDE OF MUSIC

One evening in London I attended a concert of Bach's Brandenburg Concertos. Seating myself, I exchanged some words with my
companion, and took pleasure in glancing around at the marvellous
Royal Festival Hall as it began to fill up. I t was only as the players
came out and took their bow, and as they tuned up, that I dimly
began to feel it. Something uey dzflerent and unique was lurking
about. It could not be seen or heard, but I could feel its presence,
and it seemed to be approaching!
And then, as the players prepared to begin and as the audience
hushed, this unknown something saturated the air with a crackling,
pregnant potential of which none other seemed to be aware.
Then, literailyfrom the f i s t note, the timeless moment was upon
me. Yet I was already far beyond the ability to reflect consciously
upon it, for the experience was totally engulfing and allencompassing. It left no scope whatever for any other mental
activity other than to be the perceptions to which my mind now
scemed to have been opened.
M y body seemed to come alive with light; my heart was a fire
which flared forth to consume the dross of my soul. My perceptions
were opened as though they had always before been firmly closed.
Never had I hcard music in that way! What previously I had often
listened to as abstract sounds were now Sound - a tangible, living
filigree lattice-work of mathematical precision which I could almost
reach out and touch, and which I could virtually see as it flowed
from the leading violin. Every note hung suspended in the air,
timeless and immaculate beyond all powers of verbal description.
M y body froze into a coma-like rigidity as I hung my consciousncss
upon each next chord. For several long minutes I lost all awareness
of myself. The sheer beauty of it all was quite indescribable. From
the first bar, silent tears ran from my staring, unblinking cyes.
The Fifth Brandenburg Concerto had opened the evening, and

l Ill

MUSIC AND ITS POWER

21

;IS the sublime vision seemed about to wane, therc began the
~rncerto's unique harpsichord solo. Again I was whisked quite
Iwyond myself, and saw the music in a way never perceived before.
'I'llc long, fugal arpeggios trilled through thc air like visiblc, emanatI I I waves
~
of divine essence, one behind the other, filling all the hall
.111clpassing beyond its walls into the city. I cannot say that I saw
1 1 1 music-wave's,
~
for the process did not involvc my cycs; yct ncvcrI l~i~less
I somehow did see them. I saw the music!
As the other instruments came in once morc with indcscribablc
I~,veliness,this impression of emanating waves of a tangible goodness
1,ccarne reinforced still further. It felt as though the music possessed
;I definite and very real energy, and that this was radiating out
Iwyond the hall in all directions. M y consciousness scemed to
cancompass the entire city. For a few moments I felt as though I
were looking down from a viewpoint which revealed t o me the
cantire urban spread; and not only the visible, physical city, but also
llir underlying, causative forces which shaped and moulded it. The
r~nderstanding came that this music, as it radiated forth, was
somehow acting as a sustaining, invigorating force for the whole
slirrounding area.
As the awareness of my body returned, sitting in its seat in the
lioyal Festival Hall, the impression was left with me that the
concert was in some way a glowing light amid a great, chaotic sea
11f darkness. The darkness threatened to encroach upon the flame
nd extinguish it forever. I shall never forget this sensation: one not
lf fear, but of the deepest, gravest concern; of the vast importance
~f the music which I was hearing, of the deepest gratitude for the
lpportunity of experiencing it, and that it should at all costs be preerved for the humanity of the future.
Mystical experiences have been a subject of debate for centuries
among philosophers. Up to the present day no general consensus of
opinion has been arrived at as to the reality of such experiences. Are
they less real, equally real, or more real than our usual experience of
everyday life? Each must judge for himself. But it is interesting that
visionary and mystical experiences are known to have provided the
initial inspiration behind many of the world's greatest inventions
and scientific breakthroughs; even those of such giants of the mind
as Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla.
It can be noticed from others' accounts of such experiences that
unless we are of the stature of a Ramakrishna or a St John of thc
Zross, they can come upon one when one least expects it -and then
hey are gone, seemingly impossible to recapture or call back. Ficklc
,II.;I

22

23

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC AND ITS POWER

and fey, as though they have minds of their own; for our own
imperfections d o not enable us to embody such experiences on a permanent basis. O r as the mystic would word it: it is the vision of
transcendent reality which is permanent and cternal, and we who
insist upon being fickle and fey in our relationship to the Supreme.
Christians may be correct in speaking of divine grace. Those who
are searching for truth seem frequently to be granted a kind of
spiritual 'honeymoon' period. All kinds of experiences and revelations come to them in the early days of their quest, and at the time it
is as though All Truth were already theirs. But then the honeymoon
is over, and one comes to realize that one has been granted a vision
of the goal, as though as a goad to move towards it. For a few
months or a year the veil was drawn back for one, but only as a
temporary act of grace, bestowed by destiny. And now it is one's
duty to reclaim that vision and that knowledge through one's own
unaided effort. Truth has temporarily been brought t o us, but only
in order that we might then be encouraged to find our own way
along the long and difficult path t o its permanent abode.
In retrospect, I now see that my experience of that evening was
one of the key starting points which eventually led to the development of this book. Only later did I discover how closely the
occurrence of that evening tied in t o the ancients' conception of'
music and its innate power.

IIIC substances and forms. According to the combination of Cosmic

'I'ones pres ent within any given area of space, so was the nature of
1 1 1c substance within that space determined.
And thu1s we find ourselves throwing light upon the widely-held
I~rlirfthat all matter is composed of one basic substance or energy.
11ccording to the great thinkers of old, this energy was Vibration. In
nod ern times, the physical sciences are now arriving back at this
original point of departure. Once again, science is beginning to
suspect that matter is all composed of one fundamental something,
.ind that the frequencies o r rhythms of this something determine the
.;pccific nature of each object and atom.
The universal vibratory energies were called by the ancient E g p inns the Word or Words of their gods; to the Pythagoreans of
( ireecc they were the Music of the Spheres ; and the ancient Chinese
knew them to be the celestial energies of perfect harmony. The
Cosmic Tones, as differentiations of the OM, were the most
I>owerfulforce in the universe according to the ancients, for these
'I'ones were the universe - the very source of the Creation itself.
And herein lay the vast significance of all audible, earthly sounds,
such as are
by the performing of music or the uttering of
sl)eech. For audible sound was believed to b e a 'reflection', within
11ic world of matter, of the Cosmic Tones. Audible sound itself,
which is taken so much for g a n t e d today, was in those days
tllought to contain within itself something of the enormous
(:restive, Preservative and Destructive force of the Cosmic Tones
~l~emselves.
The very phenomenon of sound was regarded with
great reverence. H e who knew how to could release sacred energies
~lirough the use of audible sound, and thereby wield a mighty
p)wer. And, in fact, spicific knowledge was not nrcessarily
~.rquired,for something of the mighty energies of the Primal Vibralion was believed to be released whenever and whercvcr audible
sound was produced. According to the nature of the audible sound,
so would its hidden effect be determined.
Hence, the role of music within civilization could not have been
considered more vitally important. In the long run, the power of
sound as a force which could be used for good or evil was conidered to be unsurpassed. And as a specific and concentrated form
,f sound production, music was of ultimate imporvancc, deriving
ts energy from Above for the working of change in the world
\>rlow.
As Julius Portnoy, the musicologist, puts it, the common belief
~l~rt,nghout
the world in many past epochs of history was, 'rhat

PRIMAL VIBRATION
In ancient times sound itself, the very basis of all music, was thought
to be intimately related in some way to non-physical and sacred
dimensions or planes of existence. W h y was this? Because audible
sound was considered to be but a n earthly reflection of a vibratory
activity taking place beyond the physical world. This vibration was
more fundamental, and nearer t o the heart of the meaning of things,
than any audible sound. Inaudible to human ear. this Cosmic Vibration was the origin and basis of all the matter and energy in the
universe.
In its purest, least differentiated form, this Cosmic Sound was
known to the Hindus as OM. Yet just as pure white light differentiates into the colours of the rambow, so this Primal Vibration
was belicvcd to differentiate into a number of more greatly defined
superphysical vibrations. These different frequcncies or Cosmic
Toncs were thought to be present in differing combinations
throughout the universe. Not only were they present within all substances and forms, in differing vibratory combinations, but they w e y e

1'1 I R

;III~.(.s
OS nausea or of headaches may be caused by such
I I I I I ~ I SIl('i~~g
crnitted from items of machinery at a distance. Similar
t . t t c . , 1s 11pon human beings and animals appear to be caused by the
..rtl~cotiicvibrations which precede earthquakes, coming even many
11o111.s
before the 'quake itself. Rhythm too can be all too real a force.
I\/l i1it;u-y experience has taught from centuries past that when troops
n~archingin unison need to cross a bridge, the commanding officer
should give the order for them to break step, for the effect of the
marching " ri'. lef, ri', lef' " rhythm has more than once led to the
collapse of such constructions (and casualties even before the enemy
are engaged !).
And does music emanate other, superphysical, powers? This is
one of the prime questions which we must attempt to answer.
Though modern opinion would answer with an unhesitating 'no',
we would be unwise to accept this answer before examining the
validity of the modcrn viewpoint itself. In this respect, it is possible
to point to an enormous (and ~otentiallydangerous) ~ a r a d o x that
:
despite the general lack of conccrn about the real nature and effect
of music, this latter half of the twentieth century has witnessed a
huge explosion and proliferation in the availability and variety of
tonal art. There are vastly more musical styles for the listener to
choose from today than at any other time in history. Recordings,
and even live performances, are available of types of music as wideranging as that of Mozart and of thegamelan of Bali; as that of the
electronic experimentalists and of Frank Sinatra; the Indian rdga
and punk rock.
Musically, then, the twentieth century is notable for its staggering variety of available sounds. But more: an equally unique
twentieth-century development is the ease with whicch thc sollnds of
music can now be acquired. L a us not forget: a ceritury ago it was
only possible t o experience a Beethoven symphony w11t.n dozens of
trained musicians werc gathered together to rehearsc and perform it
live. A constraint we can hardly conceive of today, when that same
concert can be heard from cassette or radio, even if we choose to
find ourselves on a trans-globe expedition across the poles.
Practically the same aural experience as a live conccrt is now available at the flick of a switch. True, somehow nothing will ever quite
replace the live performance, but hi-fi and Dolby video-cassettes can
come very close. And today, should we choose to listen to
Beethoven's Ninth, we can pick between conductor X's 1978
performance or conductor Y's classic 1914 recording. W e can even
keep it repeating in the background as we g o about our daily work
1

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SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

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MUSIC AND ITS POWER

.I

27

~ ~ o t i oquite
n alien (and which would possibly have seemed not a

I I I ~ l distasteful)
c
to the audiences of thc nineteenth century.
Yn - that amazing paradox! Never was music so easily avail.~l)lr,
so diverse, so continuously pumped through the city streets and
.t~rossthe airwaves - yet never has theorization or real. practical
1~1,owled~e
regarding music's nature and its effects been at a lower
t.hl,. Acoustical researchers r ride themselves, it is true. in showing
t ( T rheir graphs and sine-wave displays, but these tell us no more
I~outthe real nature of music than a man's age and personal details
(.l1 us about his character and outlook on life. Is it not time t o at
cast stop and collect our thoughts for a moment? But no, there is no
ime! Let those who wish t o theorize d o so we are too busy: there
c so much music t o listen to! A few seconds spent tuning a radio
,rings to our ears the music of many different nations and cultures
( h e radio itself being bought at a price which even a schoolchild can
afford). Then, incidental music plays almost continuously in the
background during a good proportion of cinematic and television
productions. During television advertisements the sound-track is
utilized with microscopic care and intensity in order to extract every
last penny-worth of effect out of the few seconds of time paid to the
television company by the advertiser.
In fact, the average Western man often 'hears' (if the word can
be used) more music during the watching of television than he hcars
on its own and for its own sake. W e seldom realize just
to what extent music has become a part of our lives. Surveys have
shown that the average American teenager listens to no less than
three or four hours of rock music each day. There are few in the
modcrn world who do not hear a number of hours of music each
day. Most of it is not truly 'heard' at all; yet even background music
to which our conscious minds are oblivious affects our heart-rate and
emotions just the same. (A chilling thought: an entire two-hour
feature fiim, using incidental music extensively throughout, can pass
without our consciously noting the presence of a single note. And as
it happens, thc screen's background music is almost always of a
basically jazz nature.)
For sure, we can only conclude that music is a most important
sociological
But again, w e must ask ourselves: prccisely, and scientificdy, what b music? What is it, apart from ;L
collection of organized sounds! That is, what is its function in
society? What tr its effect upon the mind and characrcr of man?
Does anybody know?
In search of answers, we peruse the literature of our rnodcrn

MUSIC AND ITS POWER

world. And we discover that there have been twentieth-century

investigations into the nature and effect of music. The problem has
been approached from several different viewpoints - philosophical,
sociological, psychological and acoustical/physical. Howcver, these
studies have been surprisingly limited in number. And even more
surprising is how narrow in scope they have been. Moreover,
whatever limited answers they have come up with can hardly be
said to be known to the average performer of music or his audience,
but have been contained within a narrow circle of specialized
academics. Altogether, modern knowledge or theory about thc
nature of music is not very inspired or rllumining. In short, it would
be nearer to the truth to say that any thought or significant
investigation into the nature and effect of music is, in modern times,
conspicuous by its absence.

11.111icalbrain. Putting it this bluntly, the materialist philosophy

nlusic seems hardly sufficient. Yet the fact rcmains that the
III I jority
of contemporary musicians themselves do, ultimately,
,l~(civeof music in this way - as 'sound' (whatever rhar is .)
w l ~ i ch entertains and gives pleasure to the brain of Homo sapienr.
'I'hc result of this materialist viewpoint upon the music of today?
\t ~nultitudeof musical forms - but virtualy all of them the music
,,I. ;it best, materialistic humanism. A century in which, to a large
tlr.!;rcc, music has lost its way (for what direction can there possibly
I)(. to take when nothing in the universe possesses any ultimate
~ ~ ~ c x nor
i npurpose
g
in any case?).
And yet
.
Izor perhaps two decades now there has occurred the beginning
;L newTawareness abroad in the world. Not only in music, but in
;my areas of life, among a certain minority of people there is t o be
und a resurgence of committed interest in matters of the spirit.
1ung and not so young people are frequently t o be found rejecting
c. materialist world-view outright. They seek instead to embrace a
ystical outlook, and tend to do so with unswerving dedication.
)me speak of the new age of Aquarius, in which, it is said, religion
ill become more scientific in the best sense, and science more
I I' ligious. Whatever its cause, that there is a new movement among
'31) me towards altruism, hope, brotherhood and an interest in self( ' V olution is unmistakable.
Yet what I believe will become dear in the pages ahead is that,
r alI our rejection of the philosophy of materialism, we have nevercless failed to reject the ?nusic of materialism. Almost every form of
rcntieth-century music IS utterly devoid of genuine regenerative
iritual value. The ancients may well have been correct in the belief
at music patterns affect llfe patterns; and if so, then for a grassots movement back towards spirituality to allow itself to continue
be subjected to the music of individuals who are of an entirely
fferent frame of mind makes no logical sense. The minds of these
rformers are gross and coarse. T o follow them, whilst aspiring
)ward, makes no more sensc than to attempt t o climb a mountain
rolling downhill.
The non-materialist world-view demands a non-materialist
~ilosophyof music. And from such a philosophy, in its own good
ne, there will be born inevitably a new music of the spirit.
The alternative is too horrible to contemplate. From down thc
tcades there comes a warning to us on the dangers of wrong types
music - from none other than Henry David Thoreau. who wrote

MUSIC ANDMATERIALISM
If there be any modern conception of the nature of music, what can
we say to dcscribe it? Only that the tonal arts are thought to be
based upon the intelligent generation of air vibrations, thcse air
vibrations somehow serving to communicate various subjective
moods or experiences. But, ifwe look deeper, we realz~erhat a s o c i e ~ ' ~

vety conception qf the nature of mmic is itrev conditioned b~ the entire

general philosophical viewpoint upon whzch that sociery is based. This is

'

l
I

8 1 1 1

11,

29

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

.!X

most important, for it calls into question from the outset the
twentieth-century conception of what music IS and what it does.
The modern notion (or lack of a notion) of thc phenomenon of
music is, in short, the inevitable result of thc current materialistreductionist world-view. In this world-view, music is inevitably
described in terms of its most tangible, measurable aspect: that it
consists of air vibrations. Also. according to this world-view, human
beings themselves - the very performers of, and listen ers to, mtlsic are merely biological machines, evolved by luck. possessing no
ultimate purpose for existencr, and whose thoughts and emc)tions
are nothing but biochemical processes automatically produced as
conditioncd reflexes to the world around them. To the materialist it
naturally follows, therefore, that people only perform or listcn to
music in the first place because past experienccs have 'programmed'
thcm to do so. At his most charitable the materialist might
grudgingly concede that these past experiences consisted of
'pleasure-feelings'; that the first movement of Beethoven's Ninth
Symphony. in hitting this and that vibrational frequency, somehow
releases certain stimulative chemicals into the listmer's bio-

IIIC~

111

..

1 l

. ..

30

MUSIC AND ITS POWER

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

from his log cabin:

31

)M',analyses what evidence there is in support of the idea that

exerts an influence, not only upon life, but even upon

~o.lnin~ate
matter. Can all things be destroyed, changed, created or
I 1. created by the power of sound?
.['hc above, then, is a general orrtline of this book: and we begin
w i r h the teachings of the sages of old. It is not that it is necessary
I ~ I I . u s to accept absolutely every single notion of the ancients on the
~.~ll,jcctof music as'objective fact; to keep an open mind will sufficc.
in approaching the subject of the tonal myaicism of ancient
I lnlcs we must also d o so in humility. After all, can we possibly afford
1 0 he haughty towards the great spiritual musicians of the past,
living as wc do in an age which has virtually no philosophy of music
#,I. its own; and an age which has allowed its own music to
tlrgenerate to the point of finding acceptable that whch it has,
111t.ludinglyrics such as:

I I I ~ I ~ C

Even music can be intoxicating. Such apparently slight causes

destroyed Greece and Rome, and will destroy England and
America.
The modern man's reaction to Thoreau's warning is likely to be one
of, 'Oh, but that's taking it a bit too far, isn't it?' Yet it isprecisely,

absolutely at this point that twentieth-century man departs from the

vieupoint held by virtually every thinking person from ancient times right
up to the nineteenth century. . .
Possibly the greatest weakness of the modern materiahstic
outlook upon the world is its inability to perceive the causes behind
effects. If anywhere, it is here that the philosophers of ancient
China, India, Egypt and Greece deserve our fullest respect, since it
could be said that they specialid in seeing to the cause and core of
things. And they most certainly would have agreed with Thoreau,
that music can destroy civilization. They explained in some detail
what kind of music should prevail in order to maintain the stability
and welfare of the state, as well as the happiness, prosperity and
spiritual advancement of each citizen. Further, they warned in
similar detail what kind of music should be rigorously avoided
because of its destructive, degenerative effects upon man and nation.
Because of the importance of what the ancients have to tell us,
two chapters of this book are devoted fully to the subject. These are
the two chapters which are classified, or sub-titled, as chapters upon
'The Ancient Wisdom'. Of the two, Chapter 1 deals with the music
and the philosophy of music of ancient China, and Chapter 4 with
the music of India and its mystical basis. Following each of these
chapters there is placed, for contrast, a chapter on the music of our
own era. Chapter 2 investigates the serious music of the twentiethcentury - the 'new music' as it is often called; and Chapter 5 reveals
the origin and possible effects of jazz. In addition, the book also
includes two chapters which are classified or sub-titled as 'Assessment' chapters. Each attempts to assess the validity or invalidity of
the notion of the power of music. Does music possess a power or
powers which can produce objective effects in the world around?
What evidence is there for this belief of the sages and philosophers
of old? The distinction between the two chapters is as follows:
Chapter 3, 'Music, Man and Society', assesses what evidence there
is in support of music's claimed influence upon animate matter, and
in particular upon man himself. Chapter 6 , 'The Physics of the

Right now !

Ahhhhhh !
I am an anti-Christ
I know what I want
And I know how to get it
I wanna destroy passers by
For I wanna be - anarchy
'Anarchy in the UK'

- Sex Pistols

'I'llc ancients, then, may yet have a thing or two to teach us. And
*.illcrwe have already dipped into the subject of the music of China,
Ict it be to China that we first return. . .

1.

The Ancient Wisdom :

Music in China
Almost three thousand years before the birth of Christ, at a time
when the music of European man may have amounted to no more
1lr;~nthe beating of bones upon hollow logs, the people of China
wrre already in possession of the most complex and fascinating
I~l~ilosophy
of music of which we know today. Whence came this
i~~volved
system of musical mysticism, or how it was developed, is a
Irlystery. W e can but say that the tradition of Chinese classical
l~li~sic
is so ancient that its origins are described today only in
Irgend, being lost beyond the mists which govern the extent of the
r rod ern historian's gaze.

MUSIC AND MORALITY

In the case of China the rule holds true that the further we go back
in history, the more sacred and vital a significance we find t o have
Iwcn attached to the phenomenon of sound itself. In the viewpoint
of the ancient Chinese, the notes of all music contained an essence of
transcendent power. A piece of music was an energy-formula. Each
different piece of music qualified the sacred power of sound in different ways. Each composition exerted specific influences over man,
civilization and the world. The particular mystical influences of a
piece of music depended upon such factors as its rhythm, its melodic
patterns, and the combination of instruments used. Like other forces
of nature, music itself. as a phenomenon, was not biased towards
producing either beneficial or destructive effects. The Chinese
understood the power within music to be a free energy, which man
could use qr misuse according to his own free will.
Above all it was this fact which motivated the Chinese philosophers to direct much of their attention upon the music of thcir
ration. For if all citizens were to be free from thc dangcrs of rlrc.
~nisuseof music and its power, and if all werc to henct'it from
irk.

3 .l

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

optimally beneficient use, then it had to be ensured that only the

correct music was played. The object of music, they believed, should
never be merely to entertain; the dark side of man's nature could,
after all, be as readily entertained by wrong and immoral music as
by correct music. Consequently, all music should convey eternal
truths, and should influence man's character for the better. Indeed,
the very word for music in China (Yiio) is represented by the same
graphic symbol as that for serenity ( 1 0 ) . ~The writings of ancient
China w h c h have survived through t o our own day leave us in no
doubt that music was considered to be able to direct and influence
the emotional nature of man. But the powers of music were thought
to extend even beyond the art's emotional influence. Music could
even directly affect the health of the physical body. (To sing well,
states one text, can not only spread moral influence, but also strengthen the spine.)
Yet one effect of music was considered above all others t o be the
most important, and this was its moral influence.
The Chinese were certain that all coarse and sensual music
exerted an immoral effect upon the listener. Therefore all music was
closely watched so as to ascertain whether its tendency was towards
spirituality or degradation, and whether, in general, its effect was
likely to be good or bad. Confucius condemned several styles which
he thought to be morally dangerous. Stated he: 'The music of
Cheng is lewd and corrupting, the music of Sung is soft and makes
one effeminate, the music of Wei is repetitious and annoying, the
music of Ch'i is harsh and makes one haughty'.
W e cannot fail to note the important difference bctween this
outlook of Confucius and the usual viewpoint of twentieth-century
man. Whereas various styles of music today are also 'lewd', 'soft',
'repetitious' or 'harsh' in their content, there is no longer any real
consideration given to the e f e c t of such styles upon the character of
the listener.
O n the positive side, Confucius believed that gnod music could
help to perfect man's character. H e said:

cording to Confucius: 'If one should desirc to know whether a

I4.111~dom
is well governed, if its morals are good or bad. the quality
#,Iits music will furnish the answer'.
I3ccause of the power for good or evil inherent within the tonal
.II.~%,
the moral effect of music was considered so important by the Chinese
, / I 10 rank as the most rmportant test of a music's worth. A thought for
lllc day, this, for so many of our own contemporary musicians and
~llciraudiences. According to the Chinese, there was scarcely
I,c.neficial effect which good music could not bestow upon a civilizalion. In the ancient Chinese work, Y o K i ('Memorial of Music'), we
cad: 'Under the effect of music, the five social duties are without
.~dn~ixture,
the eyes and the ears are clear, the blood and the vital
cnergies are balanced, habits are reformed, customs are improved,
~ h empire
c
is at complete peace.'6

The noble-minded man's music is mild ;ind delicate, keeps a

uniform mood, enlivens and moves. Such a man does not harbour
pain or mourn in his heart; violent and daring movements are
foreign to him.

!\t

MUSIC AND SPIRITUALITY

Numerous Chinese legends attest to greater, and even magical,
lx)~sibilitiesof music. One, for example, tells how the music master
Wen of Cheng learned to control the elements. Master W e n was
following the great Master Hsiang on his travels. For three years
Master Wen touched the strings of his zither, but no melody came.
Then Master Hsiang said to him: 'By all means, go home.' Putting
down his instrument, Master Wen sighed, and said: 'It is not that I
ot bring a melody about. What I have in my mind does not
:rn strings; what I aim at is not tones. Not until I have reached
my heart can I express it on the instrument; therefore I d o not
uarc move my hand and touch the strings. But give me a short whilc
and then examine me.'
Somc time later hc returned and again approached Master
Hsiang, who enquired: 'How about your playing?'
It was spring, but when Master W e n plucked thc Shang string
and accompanied it with the eighth sernitonc, a cool wind sprang
up, and the shrubs and trees bore fruit. N o w it was autumn.
Again Master W e n plucked a string, the Chiao string, and
accompanied it with the second semitone: a languid, warm breeze
appeared, and the shrubs and trees bloomed fully.
It was now summer, but he plucked the Yii string and had the
eleventh semitone respond, upon which hoar frost and snow came
down, the rivers and lakes freezing up.
the winter had come, he plucked the Chih string and
accompanied it with the fifth semitone: the sun blazcd forth and thc
ice imlnediately melted away.

..

l i

Further than this: since individuals are the basic building blocks of
society, music could also affect entire nations for better or for worse.

35

/t

'I'fIE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I ' I I I . I I I ~ , M ; I S I CWen
~ of Cheng sounded the Kung string and did
with the other four strings: beautiful winds murmured,
l l , ~ l t I \ of good fortune came up, there fell sweet dew, and the
6.l~l.ingsof water welled up powerfully.
'T'his particular legend is not, of course, to be taken absolutely at
lace value. The Chinese did believe that music could influence the
phenomena of nature. But they did not believe that the tones of
mortal man could be expected to literally call forth one season after
another as in this legend of Master W e n of Cheng. If we look a
little more closely at the story, bearing in mind the great tendency of
the ancient Chinese mind to gravitate towards matters spiritual, and
to express itself in symbolic terms, then a deeper meaning stands
revealed t o us:
The four outer strings of the zither, and the four seasons, are
symbolic of the ancient conception of the four aspects of man: his
abstract mind, his concrete mind, his emotions and his physical
body. (These four were later to be called by the alchemists of
Europe, 'Fire, A r , Water and Earth'.) Master Wen cannot satisfy
his guru, Master Hsiang, because Wen has not yet mastered his own
four aspects of being. Hence, as one result, he cannot perform
sublime music. But he goes off, and does not return until he has
attained the full flowering of the spirituality of his heart. Now
Master Wen can play the four outrr strings to great effect.
Likewise, and much more meaningfully, he has mastered, gained
total control over, and can 'play' his abstract and concrete thought
processes, his emotional nature, and the physical naturc
The result of this mastery of mind and body? Thc vital outcome
is that in playing these four outer 'strings' (his four-fold nature) in
unison, he has learned also to play the central Kung string
(corrcsponding to his Higher Self or spiritual nitturc). From thc
four-sided base of the pyramid of life, hc has raised hin~selfup to the
very apex of perfection. H e has attained full mastery of' himself, and
hence his inner genius now manifests from the heart. Hcnce, too, his
music has attained the necessary levels of grandeur rrquired by his
guru.
The moral here is two-fold: firstly, we must master our four-fold
nature before we can attain self-realization. And, secondly, only by
doing so can we then g o on to perform music which is truly worthwhile.
Another legendary account, from the Shu Kin3 ('Book of Odes')
describes a music so sublime that it invoked the presence of the
great, spiritual men of the past who had ascended to heaven. Kwei,

MUSIC IN CHINA

37

I ,Inpcror Shun's chief musician, said :

111 11lbibo11

whcn they tapped and beat the sounding stone, and struck and
\wept the ch'in and sh2, in order to accord with the chant, then
11lc ancestors and progenitors came down and visited. The guests
of them filled the principle seat. And the host of nobles virtuously
[place t o one another]. At the bottom of the hall were the
pipes and the tambours, which were brought into unison or
suddenly checked by the beaten trough and the scraped tigcr,
while the mouth organ and the bell indicated the interludes.'
Yct even in legend the use of the power of music is not always
1)cnevolent. For instance, one account tells of a music invented by
clcmons and spirits. This music raised a tempest, destroyed the
Irrrace of Prince Ping Kung's palace, and then caused the Prince's
own illness and death.638

THE OM IN CHINA
Why the importance, the vital importance, of music within the
lrl~ilosophicalsystem of ancient China? Because music was believed
t o embody within its tones elements of the celestial order which
governed the entire universe. As did the people of other ancient
civilizations, the Chinese believed that all audible sound, including
music, was but one form of manifestation of a much more
fundamental form of superphysical Sound. This fundamental Primal
Sound was synonymous to that which the Hindus call OM. The
Chinese believed that this Primal Sound was, though inaudible,
present everywhere as a divine Vibration. Furthermore, it was also
differentiated into twelve lesser Sounds or Tones. These twelve
Cosmic Tones were each emanations of, and an aspect of, the
Primal Sound, but were closer in vibration to the tangible, physical
world. Each of the twelve Tones was associated with one of the
twelve zodiacal regions of the heavens.

ASTROLOGY AND THE TWELVE COSMIC TONES

The twelve Tones were at the root of man's earliest recorded conception of astrology. That is, astrology was originally conceived as
being based on these twelve Tones and the influences whlch their
vibratory frequencies exerted over the earth. I n nll lands, astrology
began in ~ncienttimes as the study of Cosmic Tone.
Almost everywhere in the civilized ancient world this concept
prevailed. The perfect order of the heavens was thought to be

38

MUSIC IN CHINA

THE SECRET POWER OF M'JSIC

governed by thc twelve Tones. Therefore the ancients set out to

reflect this cclcstial order within the earthly world. They did so in
many ways, somc of which h tve bcen passed down cven until our
own day, though their original significance is now forgotten. Two
surviving examples of the mysticism attached to the number twelve
are. for example. the dividing up of the year into twelve months,
and of the day into twenty-four hours. But in times past these time
divisions wcre not arbitrary. Nor wcre they merc superstitious
homage to the heavens. Rather, to the ancients they werc instances
of man's wise recognition of objective, scientific facts. It was
bclieved that the twelve Toncs really did express themselves
individually to a greater degrce according to the month of the ycar,
the time of day, and so forth. A particular Tonc 'sounded' more
promincntly in a particular month. and during a particular hour of
the day.
Chincse philosophy is saturated with the idea of opposites - of
two opposite (though not necessarily opposing) forces which arc
found throughout nature. Thcse wrrc called jcrtzg (the masculine,
positive force) and yitz (the feminine, negative force). Twentiethcentury science can only agrcc with this concept: two opposi~e
forces are found in everything from magnctic charge and the
stntcture of subatomic partic!es to all cycles of waxing and waning,
of night and day, of the scxes, of lifc and death. In view of this
prig-?in basis of Chinese philosophy, it should comc as no surprise
then that of the twelve Cosmic Tones, the Cliincse belicvcd six to be
yang in nature, and sixyir:. Between them, the sixyatly and the six
yirz Tones wcre responsible for the crcation and sustainmcnt of
everything in the universe.

SOUND ABOVE AND SOUND BELOW

Audible sound was conceiz~edas being a physical-leuel manfirtation of
the twelve Tones. In other words, sound on earth was a kind uf
'undertone', as it werc, of the celestial vibrations. This fact was at
the very heart of why the ancients attributed such tremendous
importance to worldly sound. For not only were audible sounds
'undertones' of the ccl~stial Tones, but rhpy lotere nlso belreued t o
contain somerhzng of'rhe celestial Tones' supmatural power. Even as thc
Cosmic Tones rnaintaincd harmony and order in the heavens, so
then should music maincrin harmony and order upon e a ~ t h And
.
so
it would, provided that its composition and performance provided
an adcquate rcflrction of the order, harmony and melody of the
Cosmic Tones. And whcthrr or not earthly music did so depended

t1101111

39

IIC quality and nature of the composition and its ~erformance.

('.#Iw l l . ~
of~ the

..I

musician who did not understand these cosmic roots

Quite simply, he would not realize the neccssity for his art
11,. ,lctuned t o the celestial regions, nor would hc bc able t o make

,l

l,

Ir

I,),I\~(.?

I'ltis is explained in the Chinese text, The Spring and Autrrmn of

1\11 Ve:
'I'lie origins of music lie far back in time. It arises out of
,~.oportionand is rooted in the Great One. The Great One gives
risr to the two poles: the two poles give rise t o the powers of
tl.~rknessand light. The powers of darkness and light undergo
(Ilange; the one ascends into the heights, the other sinks into the
(lcpths; heaving and surging they combine to form bodies. If they
:trc divided they unite themselves again; if they are united they
divide themselves again. That is the eternal way of heaven.
I-leaven and earth are engaged in a cycle. Every ending is
followed by a new beginning; every extreme is followed by a
rcturn. Everything is co-ordinated with every-thing else. Sun,
moon and stars move in part quickly, in part slowly. Sun and
moon do not agree in the time which they need t o complete their
path. The four seasons succeed each other. They bring heat and
cold, shortness and length, softness and hardness. That from
which all beings arise and in which they have their origin is the
Great One; that whereby they form and
themselves is the
duality of darkness and light. As soon as the seed-germs start to
stir, they coagulate into a form. The bodily shape belongs to the
world of space, and ,errer)rthing spacial has a sound. The sound
arises out of harmony. Harmony arises out of relatedness.
Harmony and relatedncss are the roots from which music,
established by the ancient kings, arose.
When the world is at peace, when all things are at r a t , when
all obey their superiors through all life's changes, then music can
be brought to perfection. Perfected music has its effects. When
desires and emotions do not follow false paths, then music can be
perfected. Perfected music has its cause. It arises out of balancc.
Balance arises from justice. Justice arises from the true purpnsc of
the world. Therefore one cait speak of music only with one ~ l h oIJJS
recognked the truepttrpose o f the world. [my italics].

The performing of music often came in conjunction with tnystic:il

ceremony. Each of the two - music and ceremony - were v:~lurclh r

40

41

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

their harmonizing elements, which attuned man to the heavens.

Each helped man's being - his thoughts, feelings and physical
actions - to become aligned with the rhythms and harmonies of the
universe. Confucius wrote that ceremony established the correct
manner of physical movement in man, while music perfected man's
mind and emotions. In the ancient text, Li chi, the harmony and
sacrtld proportion of heaven is viewed as entering the earth through
thc mediation of, respectively, music and ritual:

w 1111 an astrological month of the year, during which the Tone was
I lc.licved t o be more prominently sounded throughout the earth. The
I , l \ r six months of the year expressed the sixyang Tones; the second
..In rnonths from mid-summer to winter solstice expressed the yin
'I'oncs. The musician performed his music in a key which was
I I . )ciated
~
with the current zodiacal month. The twelve notes, or lui,
the Chinese musical system each corresponded to one of the
t~lonths.The note of each month was, in audible sound, the earthly
r r.llcction or 'undertone' of the month's celestial Tone. Therefore
t..tcll month of the year possessed its own tonic and dominant lui,
w i~h which all ceremonial music should be performed at that time.
T o the Chinese mind it was self-evident and indisputable that the
I>rrfectState could only be maintained by its remaining in alignment
with celestial order. Therefore the functions of State were also
.~s\ociatedwith a tone. T o do so - to keep in harmonious attuneIncnt with the principles which governed the universe - brought the
I~lrssin~s
of indefinite preservation upon the State. T o lose this
.~tlunementto celestial order, however, inevitably reduced any
11;ttionto a condition of imperfection and impermanence. Celestial
~ " i n c i ~ l cwere
s
eternal, and all attuned with them would endure.
N:~tional upheaval and decline always came about because that
tt,~tionwas not in harmony with the universal principles of divine
OI-dcr.In particular, the leading officials of the nation should be
~ . i ~ i i i l aattuned
rl~
in their personalities and spiritual understanding.
'I'licy should literally be the embodiment of the cosmic Tones. The
t)ffices of Emperor, Empress, Minister, and so forth, therefore each
1~)ssessedtheir own special tone which was attuned to a particular
t osmic Tone. The key in which the music of a rite was performed
wits consequently also influenced by the tone of the officiating
Harmonious music became the fulfilment upon earth of the
Will of the Above. By its alignment with the principles of heaven,
c;irthly music could force by the law of sympathetic resonance the
c-nergies of heaven t o embody themselves into the leaders of the
State.''

Music is the harmony of hcaven and earth while rites are the
measurement of heaven and earth. Through harmony all things
are made known; through measure all things are properly
classified. Music comes from heaven; rites are shaped by earthly
designs.
The goal of the musician was to manifest within the medium of
audible sound a music which expressed accordance with celestial
ordcr. And to do so demanded not only an artistic proficiency. but
also a very definite scientific knowledge and discipline. This was
because the relationship between earthly music and the Ch'~neseconception of universal order was such an extremely intimate one.
Nothing in classical Chinese music was left to chance or performed
arbitrarily. ( H o w the Chinese sages wnuld havc shuddered at the
sound of much that passes for music today!) According to the
Chinese conception that life patterns follow musical patterns, it
followcd logically that random or arbitrary notcs would tend to precipitatc cl~aosand anarchy within society at largc.
Ultimately, every note was ideally intended to invokc certain
specific cosmic forces. In this, classical Chinese music cannot begin
to be understood whcn approached by the normal Western method
of musical analysis.
Well might the prospective Ph.D. researcher attrnipt to assess the
rhythms of ancient Chinesc music, its forms and structures. But, in
fact, W C can no more grasp the heart and ultimntc purpose of the
music in such a way than we can assimilate War nnd Peace by analysing thc frequcncy with which each later of tht* alphabet appears.
As one has put it:

111

THE MYSTICISM OF MUSIC

Yct for all this attention paid to the details of their earthly music,
Chinese did not forget the One Origin of all Cosmic Tones and
c )f all earthly sound. The Primal, undifferentiated Cosmic Vibration
was a central concept of Chinese philosophy. It was this One Vibralion which, emanating from the Grcat One, became the two -yang
. I I I ~yin - upon which all Creation was based. This One Vibration,

tIic

What significance the structure of the waves which bear a useful

object? What matters is that the object be not lost!9

As we have said, each of the twelvc cclcstial Toncs corresponded

42

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

the origin of all matter, energy and being, was considered t o be the
enunciated W o r d of the Supreme. Since each of the twelve Cosmic
Tones was but an aspect - a twelfth - of this O n e Vibration, the
Chinese felt that literally every note of their music, being a rcflection
of one of the twelve Tones, was also an earthly manifestation of the
O n e Great Tone. Each note of music, indeed, was performed as a
conscious celebration of, an homage unto, and an invocation unto
the Fathcr-Tone.
And since all ~ o u n dwhatsoever derived from this Vibration, the
sounds of music the-tnselves, on their own, irrespective of their combination with other tones in this or that melodic pattern, were held
in great rcvercnce by the sage-musicians. T o understand this, it is
necessary for the modcrn Wcstcrn musician o r music-lover to instil
into himself a vcry different outlook. We tend t o havc a somewhat
ingrained Occidental attitude toward musical appreciation, but to
really get to grips with the meaning which music hcld for the
Chinese mind, w e need to go back to the beginning. W e nccd to
adjust and refocus thc faculties with which we listen to and
appreciate music in the first place. Today, we do nor ns rrrle lirten to

the notes of music at all.

Strangc statement! And yet true. We d o not tend to listen to the
notes rhe7nselt~es.All that we hear and assimilate arc thc combir~;ttions
of a numbcr of notcs in the form af a melady. Evcn

;IS

gestalt fashion, look at the entire form and meaning

of

o u r cycs, in
;L dr;iwing,
and rarely focus themselves exclusively upon individ11;Il li11c.s or
marks t o the exclusion of all others, so have our ears hrco~nc.~lsccito
organizing musical notes into overall patterns and forms. 1,ittlc- l ~ c e d
is paid to the qualities of each individual sound.
Profcssional musicians sometimes refer t o this fact I)y s;iy ing that
it is not the notes which we listen to in music tnrI:~y,I U I I o r 1 1 the
intcrvals - the pitch differences between the nlltr+%.' I ' l l ( . strong
of
tendency is to hear only the melodic stream, as a riqiti!: .111tl (:~lli~lg
pitch diffcrcnces. I n this, the notes themselves C ( I I I I I I 11 11. 11,,t llillg
cxccpt as dots on the score-sheet which govern wl~ichw . 1 ~i 1 1 ( * 11nc
r. c r.1.y I I I L I C h
of thc melody goes, up o r down The notes arc tllrrt-lll~
11ke the abstract points of mathcmatln o r geomrtlv 'I'l~c.vin(l~c.~tc
a
position, but fill up n o area there: even as a Iinc in 111.11II('ITI,II I ( j0111s
up points ~n a n abstract way, yct in theory thi.; linr 11.15 no w ~ d t h
and takes up n o area.
But not so, the muslcal note as appreciated ITV tllr .ini-irn[\ of
Chma! For to the Chinese t h e individual norpc tl1f~v1\vli~r\
ICJPYF r(~nl,
llvzng and vibrant They were not abstr,~ci 131,ints o n thc

43

mathematician's blackboard, but were large, radiant dots, swollen

with feeling and esoteric significance. I n the modern mind and in
the ancient, mystical frame of consciousness w e find, then, tendencies towards t w o very different ways of concentrating upon and
assimilating music.
I t is well worth dwelling on this matter a little firther. T w o
different approaches to the experience of tonal art: the concrete and
the mystical; the objective and thc subjective. In one, the listener
stands back, assesses the structure of the piecc (is it A-B-A-B-A or AB-A,-B-AI?), and remarks upon the originality of the harmonies
during the fugal finale. I n the other, the tonal pilgrim plunges into
the notes, attempts t o reach t o their Source, to become them. I t is not
that one approach is correct and the other wrong; each is valid in its
own way. W h a t we might call the concretc approach has obviously
been dominant in the W e s t for a numbcr of ccnturies. I ~ l t e r e s t i n g l ~ ,
in its rise to prominence throughout the European baroque and
classical eras, it paralleled the simultaneous rise of objectivc science
and of man's increasing mastery over the concrete world. As
Western man began to classify and experiment with the phenomena
of Nature, so too did there arise a music which was also a science.
each component of the music being carefully analysed, each
composed note carefully considered. Eventually, like the scientific
formula or experimental procedure, pieces of music became totally
composed beforehand, the
not permitted to alter a single
notc else the entire work be subverted.
And in the East? The Eastcrn mind has always tended t o direct
its attention, not inro the world, but above it. Similarly, Oriental
music. Each rhythm is a prayer, each melody a contemplation. In his
quest for the One, Oriental man discovered divinity a n d reality
within the one fundamental component of all tonal art - the
individual note.
Because of this importancc which the ancients placed upon each
note as an entity in itself, rwer the centurics the music of China,
India, Egypt and other lands evolved a vast array of different ways
in which even the same note could be played. Indeed, is this not still
the one must irnmediatcly striking difference between the music of
the W e s t and that of the Orient? In our o w n music, a note is x notc
(C, C minor, etc.), and it's as simple as that. Yet in the East tlic
musician has that unmistakable, but at first undefinable, Oricntitl
way of striking each note, this giving to Oriental music its distinc,~
flavour.
The tones of Western music, like the abstract points of geometry,

44

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

can usually each be written as a straightforward-enough note on the

score-sheet. Even on paper we can usually see exactly how the note
is intended to sound: as a certain pitch performed by a particular
instrument and sustained for a stated period. In thc Orient,
however, the individual note is heir to a far more extensive variety
of possibilities. The same note, even upon the same instrument, can
be played in a dazzling multitude of different ways.
In his book on the Chinese lute, R. H. van Gulik explains:

~lt.\igncdto be able to perform the flowing streams of melodic

1u1tc:rns inherent in virtually all music. Frequently the same instruIII(.IIIS
are able to
entire melodies through from start to
I ~ ~ ~ i sso
l i ,broad are the instruments' capabilities. But we find in
( :l~inaa fundamentally different approach. What mattered was to
I I W earthly tone as an aid in reaching spiritually inward and upward
to the Source of all tone and of all Creation. Therefore, in their
I I I I I S ~ C , the tendency was to express single rones as clear, undiffe~x-ntiatedmanifestations of the imminent, living Cosmic Tone which
Iwrvaded the entire universe.
So what do we find? That in the Chincsc orchestra a large
~n-"portion of the instruments were those such as bells. single stones
;tnd metal slabs to be struck. String instruments followcd a similar
I>rinciplcWestern string instruments such as the violin or the guitar
11;ivcfrets upon which an entire melody can be played - even upon a
hingle stru~g.But in China the unfrctted string held prominence, as
in the harp, each pluck sounding a single, pure emanation of the
One. Nor in the case of wind instruments did the Chinesc depart
from this emphasis upon single tones. Chinese wind instruments,
instead of consisting of one tube with holes or some other
rnechanisrn to vary the pitch, consisted of rows of pipes joined
together, each pipe emanating its own, singular differentiation of
Cosmic Vibration. Usually there were twelve such pipes: one for
csch of the twelve celestial Tones and their audible counterparts.
(The mouth organ was also used, which is obviously based on the
same principle, but in miniature.)
It may seem from the abovc that the resultant music was stiff,
stultified and unmelodious. Yet nothing could be further from the
truth. As we have seen, single notes upon a string could nevertheless
be rendered in all manner of ways, extended and enriched with
subtle nuances. Moreover, orchestral performances displayed the
wonderful skill of the performers t o blend the succession of notes
from different instruments into a tightly coherent and flowing
melody. That is, melodies were less frequently performed by the
same instruments all the way through than they were built up from
the notes of different instruments. (The practice is not entircly
unknown in Western music, and is called open or pierced music. O f
it Beethoven spoke in relation to his supernal Op. 1 3 1 String
Quartet in C Sharp Minor, when he wrote that it contained 'a ncw
manner of voice writing'. Striking instances are also to thc fore in
Holst's The Planets Suite.) Such 'open' melodies were the nllr ri1thr.r
than the exception in ancient China, however, and still rc.ni:tin to

In order to understand and appreciate this music, the ear must

learn to distinguish subtle nuances: the same note, produced on a
different string, has a different colour; the samc string. when
pulled by the forefinger or the middle finger of thc right hand,
has a different timbre. The technique by which thesc v;iri;~tionsin
timbre are effected is extremely complicated: of tllc viI,r;~toalone
there cxist no less than twenty-six varieties. T h c inlprcs*,iolimade
by one note is followed by another, still anothrr. ' l ' l 1 c ~ 1 . c . is thus a
compelling, inevitable suggestion of a mood, .l11 ;~trl~osphere,
which impresses upon the hearer the s c n t i n ~ ~ nrl1.11
i illsl>irc.dthe
composer.'
It is often pointed out that whereas Wcstern ton;~l;I[ t ,111 11csaid t o
possess four dimensions - rhythm, melody, h;~r.rlltI .r 11J tone
colour - Oriental music is largely lacking in thc rl~irtlI ) I I llt.sc. the
dimension of harmony. Yet a casc could be mactc. to I 11,. c.I'(;-ct that
the Orientals nevertheless enjoy a four-dimensic~~i;~l
. I I , I . 111c multitudinous choice of options in which way each .;ilr!!ll Irolr c;tn be
sounded has no parallel in the West, and deserve?,1 1 , l ~ ~-c-!:;irdcd
r
as
a rnusical dimension in its own right.
The dimension of tone colour, or timbre (i.e. ~ l i Ir-I
f 1.111 Illrt rornmts
and their distinctive sound) is also very developrtl ; I I ~ l l Ir ~ ; I s L . This
further adds to the variety of sounds which C;III 111.~~~.c)tll~c,c.cl
even
from the same note. A note played oh a flutr i\ .I V . I ~ ~ I tlit'icrent
I~
aural experience to us than that same note playctl l r r l . I II.II.~I. ~ y or.
a drum! The glittering array of variegated - ancl ( I I I r.11 v1.1 v ?.tr;mgesounding - timbres is another immediately no111r..ll)l(. 1r.1111l.c
of
Chinese and other Asiatic music.
In the case of the Chinese, however, how I.IVi l ~ . ~ t i ~ l; !I : is to
discover that their deep and complex philosophit . ~ .,v<~cnl.
l
;IIICI the
mystic 'significance which they saw in music. Irtl I l ~ c * c.volrlr i t ) l l of
many of their musical instruments along a most ~ ~ I I \ I I . I Ip;itli.. .
In almost all other cultures on earth music;~l i~lsrrurncnts;Ire
t

)I

45

4(1

47

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

sollic cxtent in the Chinese folk music of the modern cra. The effect
ilpon thc listener is most certainly one of mind-cxpansion. Only by
broadening and sharpening the consciousness can thc full melody
and its beauty be assimilated. In fact, since no one instrument is able
t o lay claim to the possession of the melody as it flies from one
instrument to another with glittering speed, it is as though the music
itself becomes emancipated from the earthly instrumcnts. An
independent spirit, it hovers above and speaks through whichever
instrumental medium it will.

f'i~nctionof music t o that with which the Wcsterner is familiar. In

thc case of many modern music halls, ten thousand performers
would fill thc seating capacity for the audiefzce threc or four times
over. Compared t o our own day, we can say that thc cmphasis in
China was much more partzczpatzon than upon passive listening. And
this because, like farmers harvesting their crops or soldiers defending
their homcland, musicians and their music wcre without reservation
believed to be functional in a very practical and extra-musical way.
Sound was apoww; music an energy.

MUSIC AND PRACTICAL MAGIC

MUSIC AND THE T'AI CH1

1s.
The Chinese emperors employed surprisingly numcrous tnl~siciar
The T'ang Dynasty, for example, (AD 61 8-907) kept S10 Icss th,an
fourteen court orchestras, each consisting offromfra bt(ttr;irtd 10 sev'en
hundred pe?fomers. What would the voting public say of such grandiose, 'unnecessary' use of public funds today? And y c ~ :lccording
.
to the ancients, to keep so many musicians was far from llnncccssary
or superfluous, but was the height of wisdom. I;I)I.thc rnergy
invoked by the divinely-attuned tone-patterns 01' tllc..;r court
orchcstras was believed to exert a far-reaching influrr1c.c. into all the
;IS those of
affairs of the nation - affairs as crucial and widc-r:i~~!:i~i!:
the economy, the social patterns of behaviour. ; ~ j i t . i c I I ~ I I I and
I T , so
on.
During the aforementioned T'ang Dynasty, onr rr!:~rl,lr 11rchestra
alonc was formed of no less than 1346 m u s i c i ; ~ ~I.irllr
i ~ . wonder
that it was an outdoor orchcstra. T o fit them into I .ol~tlon'sRoyal
Albert Hall, one would have to place the orcbrst~,.~
i t 1 I IN. rows of
seats and position the rather limited audience o n 111r. *.I ,I!:(.! l311tit is
surely apparent here, too, in this huge numbcr 01 1n.1 It~l.r~~c.rs,
that
the real function of the orchestra was known 10 h r .I I I I ~ \ I ~ C ; I one:
I
Iu.~.l'orrning
such numbers are quite unnecessary for any pi11
picccs of music for entcr-tainmrnt. The actual, i
11111c.tion
of
!!~.I..II
cr the
thc orchestra? That the larger the orchestra r
volume of sound produced. And the greater thr \ I I I I I I ~ I , . I , . wc-ll ;is the
more minds actively involved, the greater thc 131-1111111 I 11 $11 I 11 cosmic
I!:
energy invoked and radiated forth. Thus a v.la.r I I I I I ~ ~ ~ ~ I I I ~ I went
forth with which the entire land could be invi!!ru .,I 1.11 . l 1 1 1 1 ~ 3 1 ~ ~ ~ . i t ~ ~ ; ~ l l y
enlightened.
The Chinese historians recorded that for r l ~ c d t . 1 1 1 . I I I ~ I 01her
important festivals the T'ang Dynasty also I ) t t )III:III IO!:~'I l l ( - r an
orchestra reputedly numbering no less than trrt / l f t ~ ~ l \ . / w , l(. )l~viouslY,
then, we are dealing here with an acutely difI'c.rl.~~t
t ~ ~ ~ r l o Illion
o l c the

All music is based upon numbers and proportions. For example,

there are twelve notes to the modern chromatic scale, of which
seven are major and five minor. The harmonic relationships bctween
the notes is determined by mathematical principles. Strange as it
may seem when we focus our attention upon the fact, we cannot
avoid commenting, however, that to the avcrage Western musician
the numbers and ratios of music rcmain just that, and nothing more.
H e perceives no particular significance in them. Even more surprising: he does not even search for any. His consciousness being
entirely caught up in the world of appearances, he truly cannot see
the woods for trees. H e learns at school the rudiments of the
numbers and ratios inherent in music, and from that moment on
never thinks to enquire: W h y ?
Yet the ancient Chinese mind was always more interested in the
causes behind the world of outer effects than with the world itself.
In China, the mathematics of music was considered to embody the
sacred, cosmic proportions and principles which governed all of
Creation. And of all numbers. one and two wcrc the most fundamental of all. The number nne was the number of unity and the
number of the Great One. Individual notes and individual pcrformers were always representations of the O n e God. The number two
stood for the first differentiation of the One into thc opposite
polarities of yang and yin, or of the T'ai chi. This concept of two
balanced, interacting forces is the backbone of the entire system of
ancient Chinese philosophy. Everything in the universe, including
all music, consisted of different combinations of these two fundamental forces. An orchestra, for example, might be considcrcd t o
hold an equal balance between yang and yin if half the
were male and half female. Then again, certain months of thc yr..lr
wereyang, and someyin; and among theyang months, for rx;~n~plt..
some were more yang than others. Therefore music shoulc1 I>c l~rrlr)I.-,

IX

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

mcd during each month in a key which shared that month'syang-yin

oalance. Individual pieces of music were themselves sometimes
classed according to howyang oryin they were. The opening bars of
Beethoven's Fifth Symphony would undoubtedly havc been classed
as very yang (masculine, active and positive), and the BachIGounod
'Ave Maria' as veryyin. ,
Beethoven's Fifth must surely be R . O r even = . For this
was how the different balances between yang and yin wcre written.
The principle ofyang was symbolized as an unbroken line -and
yin by a broken line - -. According to the cosmo-conccption of the
Chinese, these two opposite forces, by combining, wcrc the origin of
the Trinity. And the concept of the Trinity was far from being a
vague, abstract one: rather, all three-fold phenomena and manifestations in the universe were considered to be an aspect of the Three-inOne. In music, the Trinity manifested itself whcrcvcr or whenever
there occurred triplets of notes, a rhythm in three, or :my number of
performers which was a multiple of three.
By writing the broken and unbroken lines fo~--yirt;tlrclyrrng in sets
of three, the Chinese were able to rcprcscllt i l l wl.iting the inner
balance betweenjin a n d y a q which prcv;~ilcdwitllil~t hc three-fold
nature of all phenomena. Altogcthcr t11c1-v ;IT(.;I tot;11 of eight
possible signs such as K and = . Thcsc. c.i;:l~r ~,i!:lls(known as
ions
&a) were belicvcd to symbolize the tight I,;i\ic. I)rl l ~ ~ ~ l t ; ~ cand
combinations of existence. Hence, thc numhrr c.i!:ll~ .II(,O ;~ssumeda
mystical significance within music.
This led to another way in which the Chinc..;c. \IIII!:III 1 0 mirror
celcstial order within their musical system. In k r . c - l r l ~ ~ ! : with there
bcing eight basic manifestations of the ynr~q-YIVIIII.CY.S in the
universe, musical instruments were grouped into c.i!:l~t c I,r~sc*s.
In the
Wcst we classify our instruments according to t11v 1 1 1 ~ ~ 1 1 1 0o~fl sound
~ I Not so
production (e.g, percussion instruments, string i t i \ ~I . I I I I I , . \).
in ancient China, where instruments were gro~lllt,tl. I ( . , ( 1 1 tIi11g to the
material from which they wcre made. This mean1 t l l . l r r - : ~ ( , I l r.:lrcgory
of instrument became automatically associated wit l I .t W iclc variety
of extra-musical phenomena, since, like the i n s t r ~ ~ ~ ~ rc*vc.rything
r.rr~~,
else in the universe was also associated with onr ( I ( I I I ( . c-i!:l~r basic
kua. W e see that, through its common kuu, wltc~nc.vc.r.I niusical
instrument was sounded, it automatically invokccl, hy associ;~tion,
the spirit of a particular season, element, compass direction, a n d so
on (see Table 1).

' I ;~blcI : The Eight Traditional Classes of Chinese Musical Instruments

N ~ Ku:~=(s~rnbol)
I
Substance of

Nnrne
I

Ch'im

.'

T~ti

Li

.I

Chin

Sun

Sign

=
=
-

Elrmcnt or
Phcnorncnon
of Naturc

Example of
Instrument

Compass Scason
Point

stonc

sonorous stone
(chime)

NW

Autumn- Hcavrn
Winter

metal

bell (chime)

Autumn

dampness

silk

zithcr

Summer

fire

bamboo

panpipes

Spring

thunder

wood

tiger box

SE

SpringSummer

w~nd

drum

Winter

water

reed mourhorgan

NE

WinterSpring

mountain

globular
a...,,

SW

Summer- Earth
Autumn

Instrumcnt

II

Kin

"

L=

l
,gourd
II

49

K'un

I I

earth

From Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians ( 1 9 J 4 edition)

THE C O N C E P T OF T H E LOGOS I N C H I N E S E M U S I C
One all-important purpose lay behind all the strenuous efforts of the
Chinese to align their music to the principles and proportions of
cosmic order. This purpose was that, through the God-alignment of
music, all consciousness and life could become similarly aligned to
that same celestial order.
N o matter how far back in thc history of Chinese music we go,
we find the same: that the Chinese associated Cosmic Sound with
illumined, exalted consciou.wm. Cosmic Sound - the vibratory
essence of all matter and rncrgy - was in everything and
everyone.. and it was possiblr for man to raise his consciousness, to
take himself closer to the Sourcc, to attune himself more perfectly
with the One. Spirituality was literally a question of vibration. H c
who succeeded in harmor~izing the discords within his niintl,
emotions and body could hccome a more perfect embodiment 01Cosmic Sound, an incarnation of the Word. H e who emhodicil 1111.
Logos was inevitably exceedingly wise, moral and just; hcncc IIC w.15
the most fitting to rule.
There are unmistakable parallels here between this (:llinc.w
concept of man embodying Cosmic Sound and rlic. C:llrihti.~~i

5l

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

acceptance of the Christ as being the W o r d of G o d . Indeed,

Chinese emperors were traditionally associated with the Logos from
the earliest times. This we can see by examining just one or t w o
terms of the language. For example, the name given t o the
foundation tone of Chinese music was huung chutzg; literally
translated, this means 'yellow bell'. Yet this same phrase was also
used symbolically in reference to the ruler, and to divine will.
Outwardly, the tone known as 'yellow bell' set the standard pitch
upon which the music of the entirc nation was based: esoterically,
this foundation tone was considered to be the purcst and most
perfect audible manifestation of Cosmic Sound possible. If we
reflect upon the relationship between t w o tones set an octave apart,
the lowcr tone being an undertone which can be produced by the
sounding out of thc higher, then t h s gives us some idea of h o w the
huu~zgchung was considered to be related t o the Logos. T h e Logos,
sounding in thc rcalms of Spirit, produced the prccise pitch of the
huang chu~zgin thc physical world as irs matter-planc undertone. The
'ycllow bell' tone was an Octave of octaves of octaves, and more,
below its Sourcc-Tone; but nevertheless, it was its perfect lowerplant counterpart: as Hermes said, 'As .Above, so below.' The
'yellow bell' tone was therefore regarded most reverently in ancient
China as a genuine, audible expression of the W o r d itself. T h e
cosmological purpose of the W o r d was to act as mediator between
heaven and earth. Cosmic Sound provided a vehicle for thr
world. Those
transference of the Supreme Will into the
enlightened, selfless men who so perfected themselves ns to becomc
the living embodiment of the W o r d were likewisc mediators: as the
living, manifest offspring of the Great One, thcy were able to
convey the teachings of the Great O n e t o thc h z ~ r n n n i twho
~ were
not sufficiently developed to be able to receivc thc tc;~cliingsdirectly
for themselves.
As w e sec, then, the term huung chrtng (yellow hcll) referred both
t o the foundation tone of Chinesr music and, in thc symbolic sensc,
t o divine rulership. The colour yellow was itsclf the Chincse
imperial colour, the colour of sacred wisdom. Thc emperor was a
kind of priest-king: even as the yellow bell established the pitch of
all the Chincsc notes, and therefore the divine attunement of a!l of
their music, so too did the Emperor set the spiritual and material
laws for all his subjects, and preside over the affairs of State. He did
so bccauw just as the yellow bell perfectly reflected thc Tone of the
Logos, so was the &eror the most peifected individual through
whom thr Consciousness of the Logos could best manifest itself.

\V1111 the passing of the centuries this at tinlcs became more

nan
l than actual: as in the case of thc succcssio
:cnt
Popes, Chinese emperors were not always, i11
I
npletely fitted for their office. Originally, t
the
rrliperor was indeed both Lawgiver a n d Guru to nls aevotcd
..~~l)jccts,
and the earthly spokesman for the W o r d of G o d .
' l ' o embody thc Logos was not believcd t o bc the calling of only
ollr pcrson, though. All beings were its manifestation; all cotlld
hat purity and illumination of consciousness whereby they
I
ie pwfect, undistorted Presence of thc Word." A n d t l ~ u s
1 1 1 , - v c r y purpose of Chinesc music was towards this end: for chrir
I i111;11 and classical music was penultimately directed towards t.l~r
~,.~ising
and purifying of all performers and members of the audience.
The Chincse music of those times was quite remarkable in thc
, 1 1 1 ~ m pitt made t o free the listener from the chains of the physical
world. I t direct.ed the inner ear back to thc Supreme Source of a11
\ o i ~ n d ,beyond the outer, material world altogcthcr. And h o w was
Illis done? W e can gain some idea from the accounts of early
Western musicologists w h o journeyed to China before the classical
I lxdition had been entirely lost. O n e reported that:

SO

The muslc of the seven-stringed z ~ t h c rtends constantly towards

i~nagincdsounds: a vibrato a prolonged long after all audible
sound has ceased; the unplucked string, set in motion by a sudden
arrested glissando, produces a sound scarccly audible even to the
p r f o r m e r In the hands of performers of an older generation the
instrument tcnds t o be used to suggest, rather than to producc,
sounds. '

OF TIMES AND CYCLES: OF MUSTC AND MODES

'The extent to which music was aligned t o cosmic principles simply
cannot be overstated. The twelve notes of the Chincse musicnl
system were thcrnselves each rclatcd to one of the twelve signs of
the zodiac, one of the twclvc moons of the year, and t o one of the
twelve hours of the day (onr Chinese hour being exactly t w o of our
own). I t was regarded as imperative that earthly music be attuned trb
the celestial harmonics achese time cycles. As w e have said, tllt PI-isdominant Cosmic Tone was believed to change with t h t piwing
from one zodiacal month to the other; and so. too, t h c h;it.rnclnic.
relationship between the twelve Tones was believed to cli;~ngc;II\o
with the changing of the phases of the moon and rhc hour ot' r l ~ c .
Ll;tp.%e problem this presented is obvious; how coulri [IIL, C : l l i ~ l c . . i t .

1 .)

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

l<c.r,l' ~ h c i rmusic in harmonious correspondence with the harmonics

01 [he heavens if the heavenly Tones themselves kept changing in

their relation to the earth?
The solution was simple in theory; certainly not so simple in
practice: for each of the regular changes in Cosmic Tone, the
Chinese changed the keynote, and sometimes even the mode, of
their music. I t is startling for us today t o hear of such a practice.
Imagine the modern conductor, merrily taking the London
Symphony Orchestra through Beethoven's Ninth, looking at his
watch, and suddenly signalling for the music to be entirely transposed! O r a rector dashing d o w n the aislc on Sunday morning,
gesticulating t o the sombre church choir that they have just passed
into Taurus! Yet the Chinese were entirely serious: they had the
utter faith that they knew what they were doing and why. I t is
doubtful that they cver engaged in such absurdity as described
above. I n order t o compose, conduct, perform or appreciate as a
listener the ancient music, a good deal of esoteric, astrological and
astronomical knowledge had often t o be absorbed beforehand.
Musicians knew exactly what t o play and how to play it according
t o the date and time of day.
I t should be realized that nor only music. but even Chinese
astrology itself was also, at its source. firmly hased upon the concept
of Cosmic Sound. Astrology was the science of cclestial Sound. T h e
twclve Tones which emanated from the O n e W o r d wcre, in their
various harmonic combinations, a n s i d e r e d to bc the real cause of
astrological influences over earthly events. AstroloSic.~leffects wcre
not the inexplicable, unexplained results, vagzlrly attributed t o the
stars, that they are t o the astrologers of today. Rathcr, there was a
scientific and very plausible theory in explanation o f astrological
influences: it was the twelvc Tones of the z o d i ; ~ ~~.;iJi;~ting
.
their
~ u ~ e r - ~ h ~ sVibrations
ical
onto the earth, which wcw believed t o
affcct psychological statc-s, thc phenomena of Nnrurc, . ~ n dso forth.
After all, does not a piecc of worldly music oftcn p r o l ~ ~ u n d laffcct
y
of the
and movc us? H o w much morc then might the Fl:~rn~onics
Beyond likewise change our state of consciousnrss? Indeed, is not
all mattcr composed of energy oscillating at various frequencies?
Then that high-frequency energy-waves from beyond the earth
could affect matter and consciousness does not seem at all an
implausible or superstitious idea. According to the Chincse, the
monthly changes from one sign of the zodiac to another indicated
cosmic .modulations in the pattern of cclestinl harmonics. W i t h each
new stellar configuration, new Tones inundated the earth, bringing

MUSIC IN CHINA

1*'1111
111c111new tendencies in thought. ncw r n o i d s , different
Irr.l~,ivio~~r-patterns
and different activities in thc N ; I L L Ikingdom.
~T
Most interestingly, there has survivcd intact sincc ~ h o \ cdays
. . l l l t i r . indications of which actual musical notcs were associ;ctccl with
I I I ( . I wclve moons of the year and the twelvc hours o l tltc d ; ~ y(.\ V C
. . l ~ o ~ t rcmember
ld
that the chief significance of thrse audihlc tones
\ \ , . I \ 111at they were each worldly counterparts of one o f thr. v c t j ~
'1'onc.s of Heaven.) Rendering the musical tones according t o 111c
~l~oclcrn
Western scale ( C , C #, etc.) the correspondenccs wcrc:

Note

Moon

Hour

C
C#
D
D#

6
7
8
9
10
11
12
1
2
3
4
T

1
3
T
7
9
11
1
3
T
7
9
11

E
F
F #
G
G#
A
A#
B

I t would be pleasing to think that, from this data, we could now

carry on the tradition of transposing and otherwise altering our
music according t o the month and hour! However, a note of caution
for would-be revivers of the lost art: the Westcrn notes indicated
above are only the approximate pitch of the Chinese notes. Thc
chung foundation tone was roughly F, and corresponded with
the clevcnth moon and the eleventh hour. But, as we shall shortly
see, the huang chung (and thercforc all the notes of the scale) varied
in pitch throughout the centuries.
Taking still further the alignment of their music, below, to celestial principles, Above, the nii~sical instrumcnts themselves were
designed with often deep csotcric symbology in mind. One o f thc
oldcst and most sacred of Chinesc instrumcnts, the sheng, is a wincl
instrument the use of which was almost cntirely reserved fr)r holy
seasonal convocations. It had 24 pipes - that is, oneplnnx ancl one
yifz tnna! expression for each of the twelve signs of the xc>~li;~c.'
'
Moreover, we can be sure that this was considered t o hc. n o 1 o n l y
for symbolic purposes, hut for eminently practical p u r p o . ~ ~-~1.1 1 ~ .
invocation of cosmic forces.

i4

MUSTC IN CHINA

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Another instrument, the cbuen, possessed twelve open strings.. .

plus a very different thirteenth string which, unlikc the others, was
stretched along a calibrated scalc. Here, the twelve strings represent
the twelve zodiacal and Tonal diffcrentiations of the Logos, while
the thirteenth string corresponds t o the Logo5 itself. (The same
cosmological relationship is evident in the instance of the twelve
tribes of ancient Israel dnd thc th~rtecnthtribe - the pricsthood.
Later, this samc mandala appeared in the form of the twelve
disciples and Jesus Christ.)
At times yct another variable waq employed tn order t o infuse
music with cosmic principles: the number of musici:tns. For instance,
the gigantic outdoor band of the T'ang Dy11;tsty included 4 8
singcrs, or one t o correspond with each nf t h c four clement:i in
-L ..
2). C l n c i n J o. ..o..~v~cilcstra
relation t o each of the twelve Tones ( 4 1~
includcd 1 2 0 (1 OX 12) harpists. No doubt thcrt. would bc numerous
other examples, but our knowledge md;ty oi t l ~ cprrcisc numbers
and makc-up of most of the ancient orchcstr;~.;ic inuomplcte.
Every conceivable aspect of music wits, l l ~ r . r l , ;lligtlcd with thc
Above, that nothing remained mund;~nc.'1'1)~.~.c..;ulr w.15 a scierztifj:~
art; art for the sake ofpracticd p.f.; l p c ~ v . I$y I.~.(.;II~~I,I:
;I 1o11;tI art which
- .
. .
Ic.stial. orci c r ,
was an accurate countcrpar
mcdium for
the ancients were convincrc
,ics into the
the entry of heavenly prc
matter-world.
The carth had become imperfect duc t o l l ~ r * i11h;lrmonious
. ~l Zi~rt tall could
thoughts, words and deeds of a n imrcrfect I i u n ~ ; ~v ~
be restored t o pcrfccrion and maintained hy I I ~ I . !:ivi~~gforth of
perfect music. Thus a line of stability could III. I I I - I c I , ~llroughthc
science of sacred sound, against the furthcr cnc ~ - r j ; t t I)rncnt of discordant forces which, if a balance was not held, c o ~ ~ lIir l* ; ~ c lto disaster.
Sacred sound was such a balance against impcrfe.t [ion ; I I I ~evil. And
more: correctly applied music was belicvrtl 1 0 I-)L. capable of
Source.
eventually re-aligning the world t o its originill ;111cl I)(.~.I'(*ct
Does not the music of the world have its hi!:l~li,i:l~rs,its louder o r
l i o stars.
~ ~ y
more important passages? S o it was with t h r ~ \ ~ ' ~ i i ~of~ the
Vitally important emanations of T o n e wcrc l~r-lir.c'rtlto inundate the
. .
earth at ccrtain special times of the year. TI,1 1 , lllltl-pclints of each
season, the t w o solstices and t w o equinoxes, wrhrr' pe riods during
t l the spiritual
which vast radiations of sacred energy werc 1.1 - I t , ~ \ r at
I
1'
Ievel. Music could act as the medium to aiuI .rll~nt.
ufe-enhancing
forces t o enter more fully into the material world; I Ilc-rcfore it was at
thesc four times of the gear that music and rir11:kl c.ottld be used still
&

IIIOI-(.

cffcctively than at any other time. ( W e have already noted

I I I . L I lLr such festivals, the T'ang Dynasty is said to havc brought

,!:ctl~cr an 'orchestra' of ten thousand performers.) Invigorated by
~l~c.sc
four outpourings of Cosmic Sound each year, thc carth
I-c-ccived what we might call an annual four-movement 'sytmphony
# , I tllc stars'. By sci~ntificallyinvoking as much as poasiblc of this
wcrcd energy down into the earth-plane, the holding of four annual
I)t.riods of holy ritual ensured the greatest brnefit f o r the n,ltion in
,111 its affairs during the ensuing threc months.
lcnt
An awareness of these four vital periods is :
~
rl~roughoutthe spiritual and occult history of thc W c s r c l . ~world.
Iior example, pagan and witchcraft celebrations sought 10 rlt;~nncl, ~ n doften to pervert - the energies of the solstice or cqt~itlnxinto
lcvcls of the mortal libido. In reply, the rarly Christians. hcilip ;~lso
.ware of the esotcric significance of the four mid-season;tl points,
,stablished a number of celebrations and holy rituals in ordcr o n c c
nore t o see the sacred energies channelled purely and altruistically.
Chief among these periods were Easter and Christmas (spring
equinox and winter solstice). W e might also remark, in passing, tli;~t
these occasions are today, for the most part, once more celcbratcd in
)agan and hedonistic manner.. . (Would t h e spiritual atrnosphcre of
he carth be turned around and accelerated once more if the four
acred convocations came again t o be observed in the correct way.
hrough the more general and widespread use of 11oIy song and
~eautifulmusic?)
11

THE W N G CHUNG AS THE FOUNDATION OF

CIVILIZATION
T o the sages and emperors of ancient China, the alignment of carth
with heavcn, and of man with thc Supreme, was literally thc
purpose of life. An important part of this process was to consciously
align the civilization with celestial principles and proportions. For
example, we have seen that great attention was paid t o ensure that
he music of civilization was aligned with the Logos by means o f
tandardizing all musical pitchcs according t o the haang chung. But vhat of the dimensions of thc length and the width of objects? S<)
much for the music of civilization, but what of its systcm o f
weights? Should not all bc standardized according t o thc Ahovc.
and nor only musical pitches! W a s it not a fact that Cnsrnic Souncl
was the basis of ewerything,and that it determined thc w~kight.c i ~ r .
~ n dtone of all things? Yet here there was a prr,l~lt*ln
: it w . ~ s
rlatively simple t o harmonize worldly sound wit11 C o s n ~ i cS O L I I--I ~ ~

p
-

F-l,

I
I

j6

MUSIC IN CHINA

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

17

,l

'i

I,

1 ' ~

l'

~,

4,
'l

' I .

l1
l,,

1,

"

l,
; ~i
l1

l
l

'

1
~
1'1

;'

'!
l

by discovering the earthly scale of tones which corresponded with

the Cosmic Tones; but how could the non-tonal systems of measurement also become accurate reflections of the principles of the
heavens?
As in the case of their universal adherence to one foundation
pitch for their music, it was a vital matter t o the Chinese that all of
their systems of standardization be sacred, not profane. It was a
vital matter to them since, according to the ageless philosophy, that
which mirrored the heavens was, like thc heavens, eternal. A
civiltxation which mirrored the Above would never pass away, for every
institution and object within it provided a medium for the containment of
life-enhancing, invlgorarzng cosmic forces. O n the other hand, the
civilization which was founded upon arbitrary, mortal principles
could never long endure, but was inevitably doomed to transience
and decay.
And so, thousands of years ago, at a time so distant that mankind
today posssesses no accurate records of it, some individual must
have set about finding the solution to this problem. Perhaps after
much preparatory fasting, prayer, thought and meditation, the
revelation was at last received of how, from the possession of only
the divine pitch of sound, all divine proportions could be derived.
In the case of music, thc key to accurate alignment with Cosmic
Sound was the huan'q chung foundation tone. And to produce this
tone, a pipe of specific dimensions had to be blown, did it not?
Then right here were the required proportions ! The pitch, length
and volume of the pipe were completely interrelated: change the
length, for instance, and the volume automatically changed with it,
as did the pitch the pipe would produce. Only thepipe ofperfect lerzgth
andpevfect volitme couldproduc~the peffect yellow bell' tone. Hence, its
length became the standard Chinese length of mcasurement, its
capacity the standard of volumc, and the number of grains of rice or
of millet whch the pipe could contain rendered a standard weight
measurement. So closely affiliated did music and thc standardization
of all other dimensions in China become that the Imperial Office of
Music was associated with the Office of Weights and Mcasurement. And the sacred pipe which gave this standardization was
often owned, not, by the former office, but by the latter.67'4f- As
though to demonstrate for all time the ultimate degree of their
idealism and scientific devotion to the Above, the Chinese
theoretically succeeded in aligning their entire culture and civilization to the huang chung, and therefore to the Logos.

'I'H E ETERNAL QUEST

twelve notes of the Chinese musical scale each had their

~clividualnames, this being also true of the foundation tonerthe
rrmg chung, itself, the musical note of which was called tung. As we
II.IVC seen, this foundation note was considered to be the earthly
~~~;~nifestation
of divine will, and a sacred, eternal principle, upon
which was based the proportional systems of the entire State. This
r;lises, then, an ultimate question: what would happen if the nnts
taken to be the pitch of kung was out of tune, no longer being thc
perfect receptacle for divine energies?
The entire State would become out of alignment to the Above! The
:curacy of the kung was therefore absolutely paramount. As the
:hinese text, Memorial of Music, warns: 'If the Kung is disturbed,
len there is disorganization, the prince is arrogant.16 So that if the
tang was inaccurate, all manner of things would be likely to go
wrong. Even the ruling prince might become iaharmonious and a
poor receptacle for divine will, imposing his own human will upon
' ~ epeople. The perfect kung was then, in short, the great key to a
~rfect,golden-age civilization.
Yet how, indeed, could they ever be sure that the note which
ley took to be tung was perfectly accurate? H o w could there be
ly certainty that the pitch pipe they used was absolutely true in its
me .?
And so it was that the search for the pure, immaculate tonal
reflection of the One Tone assumed supremely idealistic, mystical
proportions. The instrument which could give to man the foundation tone for a musical scale which was in perfect harmony with the
universe was the key to earthly paradise, and essential for the
security and evolution of the racc. It became a Chinese Holy Grail,
the goal of the ultimate quest. One legend tells of the wonderful
journey of Ling Lun, a minister of the second legendary Chinese
Emperor, Huang Ti. Ling Lun was sent like an ancient Knight of
King Arthur t o search for a spccial and unique set of bamboo pipes.
These pipm were so perfect that they could render the precise.
standard pitches t o which all other instruments throughout the land
could then be tuned. Looking closely at this and other such legendc,
it is discovered that they are deeply symbolic: even as the perfectly
tuned pitch pipes could be the standard for the tuning of all othrr
instruments. therefore bringing earthly music into conformity w i ~
11
universal harmony, so too could the perfectly 'tuned' or self-rrnli7r.tl
man become the standard for all other men to follow.
What was the precise pitch which was actually used :IS~ l l cnorc.,
'11~-

..

18

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

kung? Modern researchers have not been able to determine it

exactly, but estimates place it at between middle C minor and the F
a b o v e . V h e final Chinese dynasty seems to havc placed kung at
around D, at a pitch of 601 . ) c.p.s. according to a report by the
musicologist van Aalst in 1 8 8 4 . ' ' However, this does not mean
that all the previous dynasties took the same pitch, D. as their foundation note. The Chincsc did not conceive of the universe or of the
heavens as being static. Even as works of earthly music progress
through various different melodies, rhythms, contrasts, keys and
movemcnts, so too, according to thc ancients, did thc crlestial music
which was thc Source of all earthly tones. As astrological configurations changed, so too did the universal harmonics. WC1r;ive already
seen that the progression from one zodiacal n i o r ~ ~tol ~another
indicated quit< literally a modulation in the Music of the twelve
Tones. At times this could mean that Cosmic Sr,ilncl 11;icichanged so
significantly that, though the kung had hrcn ;tc.cllr;it tuned to it, it
was so no longer. The kung would thcrcforc rciluirc nlociifying.
i t io11OS tl le &~g, tlhe
Just think what this meant: with the
nit ;ill ~bjectsar~d
State's entire system of weights ;incl I
l ! Only i n this W;'Y
things based upon them also 11;1J 10 I
co~lldthe State be realigned with cclrsrl;~~
p l - ~ iplr.s.
n ~ Whrnevcr ~l n e
first emperor of a new, incoming Jyn;isty took t l ~ ( ~Ilrorlc,
'
one thing
only was on his mind as the first and forerrlost thin!; ro d o : to seek
to correct thc note. kung. (Aftcr all, if' the krtrix I 1 1 I l ~ cprevious
of
dynasty had been in pcrfcct harmony with tlir ~ * I C I . I ) . I I pri~ici~les
the universe, how coul~lt h e dynasty ever havr cntlr~l... ?)
(sly

''

RIGIDITY VS. JNNOVATION: THE CRUCI AI.

DILEMMA
This willingncss of thc Chinese to alter their 'yellow I)cII' foundation
note constituted an ingcnius theoretical solur ic I I I r c the timeless
problem in music of rigidity vs. innovation. Tl~i\v i r ; ~ lissuc is onc
01' India. The
we shall he returning to in relation to the n111~ir.
question is: to what extent should music hc rr?:l~l;~tc*ciand controlIed, and to what extent allowed freedom of rxlwcssion? T o what
extent should the prevailing music be rigidly ~ l ~ . ~ i ~ l t a i and
n e d ,to
what extent permitted to alter?
Changes in the music of the nation might ulrilll:~rcl~
prove to be
genuinely beneficial; the innovations might truly I)(. for the purpose
of evolving and improving the tonal arts. Or /Irrr rurght not. O n e
realizes the immense significance which this rigitlit p vs. innovation
dilemma held for any culture which accepted tllc vicw that music

19

p'ssesses the ability to transform - improve or degrade - civilization. Virtually every major civilization of antiquity held this vicw.
l he wise among them were thercfore very much awarc of the
pitfalls of either extreme in music - over-rigidity or over-innovation
- and sought to achieve a balance between the two. h unwise
degree of innovation or a condition of outright musical anarchy
c o a d prove deadly to the State. But, o n the other hand, complete
inflexibility could cause music to stagnate.
H o w t o avoid stagnation in music, and yet steer well clear of the
treacherous rocks of absolute anarchy? I n their own way, each of
+he great ancient civilizations formulated its own unique variation
)n the same basic solution: stagnation could be avoided, and
,reativity encouraged in safety, by the adoption of a musical system
.vhich allowed the composers or performers free expression - within
certain well-defined rules and regulations. The Chinese variation on
this solution was twofold. Firstly, new compositions of music were
allowed provided that they were not obviously immoral or anarchic.
All new compositions were required t o conform to the standard
system of musical notes, modes, etc. and thus were aligned with the
Above. But the fact that new works of music could come forth
levertheless provided scope for the introduction of new melodies
.nd beneficial moods. This helped to guarantee that the musical arts
etained sufficient fluidity so as to be able to keep
- pace
- with new
astrological conditions.
Yet even then there remained, the Chinese believed, scope for a
dangerous over-rigidity. For what if the celestial harmonics themselves changed in a major and prrmancnt way, and yet the system of
musical rules did not? Would not this. too, place the music of the
nation into a state of perilnus inharmony in relation to Cosmic
Sound? W e see, therefore, thc cxtrcmc value of being allowed to
modify thc kung. According to the Chinese, a kung which remained
absolutely inflexible over ninny ccnturies could ultimately prove
suicidal t o a civilization. This was bccause a static kung - and a
static music - c o d d only rct;iin its value if the universe itself w;a
static, which it was not. Over-rigidity in music could thereforc
prove just as dangerous as too much innovation. That which did not
adjust to the new day was fated to fade away.
However much one may agrcc or disagree with the specifics of'
the ancient Chinese musical science, its belief that it is csscnti;il to
steer a middle-way between the twin pitfalls in music oi ovcSl.rigidity and anarchy is surely a valid and timely reminder 10 rhc
peoples of any age.

..

60

THE M Y S T I C I S M OF MUSIC AND N U M B E R

'Music expresses the harmony of heaven and earth,' states the
Memorial of Music. And in the Record of Rites wc are told that,
'since 3 is the symbolic numeral of heaven and 2 that of the earth,
sounds in the ratio 3 :2 will harmonize heaven and earth'. To apply
this concept in practice, the Chinese took the foundation tone, the
huang chung, and from it produced a second notc in the 3:2 ratio.
For example, having constructed a musical string which, when
plucked, sounded the huang chung (or ' b n ~ ' )notc, a sccond note in
the 3 :2 ratio could be produced b y pressing the strinl; ngainst a fret
one third of the distance from its end, and I,y ~hcllplucking the
remaining length of t w o thirds. (Alternativrly, ;I srcond string of
t w o thirds the length of the first could hc t~sctl.)This 3:2 ratio
between the two pitches is called by m u s i c i : ~ ~I O~C\ I ; I ~ the perfect
fifth. By taking this sccond note, and then c o l ~ ~ i ~ ~ along
~ ~ i r t similar
!;
lines, through, a ccrtain system a total o j I wt,lvc. I I O I C S altogether
could be produced, all being related I,y ;I ~ . ~ t . Il )r !. I)c.rScctfifths or
3 :2 ratios. The result: twelve notcs ; t I I tlc.~.ivt,(l11.0111 the sacred
hzldng chung; twelvc earthly cout1terl);trlc I 1 1 ' 1 lit. I wt.lvc. 'T'oncs.
Of the twelve notes, or I$ as thr C l ~ i ~ ~ rc., ;sl ltl r., r l lllc.n~,only s e w n
urerc incorporated into the music;rl s r , ; ~ l rwltic 1 1 w;r6: . ~ ( . t ~ ~ aused.
lly
1 111.1.c.sponded
to
The twelve 1; can be said tn hxvr ;11y7r.osirn.11c~l~
the twelve notes of the modern chrom;{tic sc.:~Ic;~ 1 i r 111~.
I
seven more
important Chinese notes with the scvcn major I l c I l r . , ~ oi roct;ty's scale:
Do-Re-Mi-Fa-Sol-La-.<;.
Rut of thcsr srvc.11. I I I I ~ C:l~incsevery
rarely made use of the t w o sen~itoncs,so th;tt in ~ l ~ - ~ ~ c , l only
i c - c . a fivenote, or pentatonic, scale was utilized. The sitnlc. w . ~ \,tIso thr case in
Egypt, Greece and other ancient civilizations. ' I * l ~ i \l ~ c ~ ~ i t ; ~scale
~onic
therefore consisted roughly of the notes wc now.~tl.~v\
~*c.lcr
to as F,
G, A, C and D.
Hence, the mysticism attached t o the nun~l>c.l-,I . 2 . 3 . j. 7 and
1 2 is discovered within music as follows:

1 -The O n e Tone, or Cosmic Sound. of tl~t.\ I I ~ Y IT I ~ C .

2 -The T'ai chi: the first differentiation 01 I Iw ( )11c.
3 - T h e Trinity: offspring of the T'ai chi.
12 -The twelve Tones of the zodiac, thcir ( - , I I - I lily counterparts
being produced from a series of 3 :2 rat i t 1,
5 -The five minor tones of the twelvc.
7 -The seven major tones of the twclvr ( 0 1 which five arc
whole tones and two semitones).

61

MUSIC IN CHINA

THE SECRET P O W E R O F MUSIC

In the philosophical system of China the number fivc was par~icularlyimportant, so it is of little surprise that their musical scale
should also have been pentatonic. Phenomena of a widely diverse
nature were categorized into divisions of five, each of the fivc divisions being associated with one of the five musical notes. Thc notcs
of the rulers, seasons, elements, colours, directions and planets wcrc
as shown in Table 2.
Table 2: The Fiz,e Notes and Their Symbolic Correspondences
Note
Category
Kung

Shang

Political

Emperor
or Prince

Ministers

Loyal Subjects

Affairs of State Produce or

or Public
Material
Works
Things

Scason

Autumn

Spring

Summer

Winter

lement

Earth

Metal

Wood

Fire

Water

olour

Yellow

White

Blue

Red

Black

Wcst

East

South

North

Venus

Jupiter

Mars

blcrcury

lirection Centre
Ylanct

Saturn

Chiao

Chi

Yii

From Grove's Dictionay of Music and Mlcsicians ( 1 9 14 edition)

It is impossible not t o notice the prime importance here assigned

t o kung. Symbolically, it was related t o the head of State, the earth
element, and the centre ( r ~ t h r rthan to any direction of the
compass).$
MODE = MOOD
T h e five notes were also each rtl;ttcd to one of five important virtues

- benevolence, righteousness, pt.oprict)r, knowledge and faith.' In

this we have one of the first, f:iscinating recorded instances of man'?
association of different psycliolc~~ical
qualities to specific pitchcs.
The belief that specific m ~ n i c ; ~expressions
l
each exert their owl1
objective effect upon man is at rhc very heart of the suhjccr ot' ~ l i r
inner power of music. The Chincse, in addition t o linking not(..; wir 1 1
virtues, were also convinced that the various styles o i c o n ~ l i ~ i . ~ t i l ~ ~ ~ ~ .
of notes - that is, the different modes - also had thcir O W I I ~lr.l~r~irl.
influences over man's crnotions. According t o the tr111il, L 1 , 1 1 1 11 11.11 1 1
and other important notes within a given piece o l rn~~sit. I I I I I .I$4 ( 1 1

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

ding to their order in the melodic note-sequences, so would the

emotional and moral effect upon the listener be determined. W e
might express this concept in the short formula: MODE =
MOOD.
There is good reason to suppose that the practical application of
this formula by the Chinese musicians played a central role in determining the entire course of Chinese history. During the several
thousand years of the history of China there were at least some
pcriods of internal conflict and of invasion from foreign lands, and
yet through it all the essential 'flavour' of the civilization - its
philosophy, its lifestyle, and even the physical appearance of its
architecture and styles of clothing - remaincd much the same.
Compare this to the people of Europe during the sanic period (3000
BC to the opening of the twentieth-century) with all the comings
and goings of races, the risings and failings. mass exterminations
through war and plague, and the extreme cultural differences during
those five millennia, and we begin to g;tin s o m c idea of the
magnitude of the Chinese accomplishment ! And now, in these
trying, final decades of the twentieth century - whcn calamitous
extremes of chaos reign, when many c:ln sc;trcely believe that
Western civilization can survive another f'ifiy yc.;~r-S.rllc world being
threatened by an overwhelming multitude ol' rl;tngrrs including the
threats of potential nuclear war, tu~nultuoussor-i;rl upheavals and
natural cataclysms - is it not now or never tll:lt wc should step
down from our frail, insubstantial platforms of' ct~ltur:tlpride, and
take a long, cool look - with huniility - at the poldcn itgc of China?
H o w did they maintain the same basic culti~rcxncl socic!ty, largely
unaffected by all the cvents which threatened thrni, ovcr tbousatzds
of years? What was the secret? Was it one which wchcould apply
today? And - perhaps equally important - wh:tt, ~IIC'II,
was it that
eventually did lead to the downfall of the ancicr~tChinese civilization? Is there a warning lesson for us to be gleaned 6.0111 the event?
Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians pcrcrl~tivclycomments
on the fact that, 'Despite the vicissitudes of timr, clcstruction, wars,
foreign influences and independent experimrnr, a11 has been
assimilated or rejected and guided back by
IChina's] persistent
natural philosophy as by a hidden hand.'6
N o doubt there is considerable truth in this, th:t~the philosophical
and religious world-view of the Chinese aacd throughout the
millennia as a guiding, ordering agent. Yet how, indeed, was the
philosophy itself able to abide for so long, rclativcly unchanged?
Grove's Dicliotzaty is obviously correct in speaking of a 'hidden

hand' that continued to sustain a certain mould or matrix over

Chinese civilization. Yet the mould may well have consisted of
something more potent and vigorous in its practical effect than the
natural philosophy alone. And the Chinese themselves bclicvcd that
this was so: they were convinced that life pattcrns follow music
pattcrns; as in music, so in life; and that a stable music crisurcd a
stable State.
The effect of music upon a nation was conceived as being like
that of a magnet held bencath a picce of paper upon whicl~iron
filings are placed: shake the filings about, drop morc upon rl~cm,do
what you will, but the magnet and its magnetic ficld will c o ~ ~ t i n utoc
sustain the same pattern and order. The pattern of iron filings can be
changed only by the moving of the magnet itsclf, o r its rcpl;tccnient
by a differently shaped one. In exactly the same way that a magnet
cornpells the pattern of filings into conformity with its o w n f'icli, so
Confucius and the other Chinese
were certain that
modes ruled moods, music thus influencing life.

62

...

63

THE LEGENDARY ORIGINS OF CHINESE CLASSICAL

MUSIC
But where did this mysterious music and its cntire cosmological
basis c m e from? A legitimate question, especially if we are beginning to suspect that the esoteric power claimed for this music may,
in at least some respects, have been a real one. M'ho, then, first
brought forth this music and its power, and h o w i
According to the Chincsc thcmselves, the origin of their music
lies in the mysterious legendary pcriod of the third millennium RC legendary because little or no hard archaeological evidence has been
discovered to attest to this era. However, it would seem likely that
the civilization did indeed cxisr ;it 1c;ist as early as this, even though
until quite recently, modern scho1;trs scoffed at the mention within
old Chinese texts of d~nasticswhich the texts claimed t o have
existed at around 1 5 0 0 RC. (Probably much of the scholars'
disbelief stemmed from thcir vcry inability to accept that the
civilization could have extendrd. relatively unchanged, over such a
vast period.) Then, to their embarrassment, diggings began to
unearth the relics of those very dynasties. That which had been
legendary became a matter of known history. It seems wisc thcn.
not to adopt a sceptical stance towards the legendary era of thc
third millennium BC.
The ancient texts of China itself associate the establishment of
thcir music with five enigmatic, legendary personasvs who. it is said,

64

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

were China's first monarchs. N o ordinary monarchs, these,

however. Divine in nature, these five rulers are accredited with the
entire genesis of the civilization, and with the setting forth of the
philosophy which would maintain the State oncc thcy themselves
had departed. The first of them, Emperor Fu Hsi, is said to have
been the founder of the monarchy and the 'inventor' of music. Fu
Hsi is also reputed to have been the author of the I Ching. H e is said
to have reigned from around 2 8 j 2 BC. Reflecting the ancients'
belief in the power of music to create an invisiblc nlalrix for the precipitation of physical events and conditions, Fu Hsi's music was
called fu-hi (to 'help to occur'), or sometimes fi-)en (to 'establish the
foundation'). Every culture has its own unique music, and by first
bringing forth the style of Chinese tonal art, T:u tlsi established the
foundation for the civilization.
The following four divine rulers also placrcl g r c . ; ~c ~ n ~ h a supon
is
music; they seem to have realized that it w;is i l l 111is;ire that the keys
could be placed for the indefinite stahilil y :11it1 111.1intrnanceof the
civilization they were manifesting. T'
'
'
, Huang Ti
(from c. 2697 BC) is said to have est:
rhung foundation tone and the musical systc.111
Ie also formulated a particular style of nl~rsir;~~
I l r - r l r r l r ~ r . ~ r ~ [ wlrich exerted
magical influences and was known as hsirn-rl~ih,or ';(]l-pervading
infl~ence'.~
But precisely who the five enigmatic t l i v i ~ l c ,rulers were,
and whence came their wisdom, is unknown. 'I'l~c. ~ I I I I story of the
establishment of the Chinese cosmo-conccptitrn ;111tl IS music is
therefore still shrouded in quitc a heavy vciling o i mys1c.r.y.
The work of further developing the tonal arts was v:il-liedout by
later legendary emperors. These expanded thr I ~ l ~ i l o ~ obehind
l~l~y
music, expressed specific teachings on the psycl~olo~:it~,il
;ind moral
effects of the different individual sounds. ;111tl ;itltlcd t o the
sophistication of the musical arts in their praaic;il prrlt wniance. This
was the golden age of Chinese music and civiliz;ltion.
'

THE HISTORICAL ERA

Not that the musical system remained nhroln~rly unchanged
throughout those many centuries. From the b e g i ~ ~ of
~ the
~ i ~better~g
documented, historical dynasties we find that tlbc-rr wcre a number
of alternative systems of liii developed at lc;i..t in theory. One
involved not twelve liii as in the traditional syqtvm, hut a total of
360, no less! Such innovative ideas seem to havct 11;id little lasting
practical effect upon the music of the people, howc.vc.r.
Several Chinese texts speak of attempts t 1 ~ 1wcre made to

MUSIC IN CHINA

65

iichieve equal temperament. (That is, to develop a system of exactly

q u a l intervals between the twelve liii, rather than to i~scthe ancient
system of twelve notes related by slightly unequal but gcomctrically
perfect 3 :2 intervals.) As late as the sixteenth-century AD. Prince
Tsai-Yu is said t o have embarked upon the quest for equal tempcramcnt. First studying all the works he could find on the thcory of
music, he then would probably have fasted, in the traditional
Chinese manner, in order to purge from his form all physical and
psychological dross which might hinder his reception of spiritual
illumination. Then he sat down and meditated deeply upon the
problem. Days and nights passed. But at last, we are told, 'the light
of truth was revealed to him', and he realized the precise formula for
equal temperament.
Prince Tsai-Yu's contemporaries appear not to have been taken
by the idea of equal temperament, however, for no Chinese instruments have ever been discovered which were tuned in such a way.
Their reason for objecting probably concerned the different
cosmological significances associated with the two systems of
tuning: the ancients' use of unequal but geometrically perfcct
intervals between the notes implied infinite transcendence and
contact with the heavens, while the use of tempered, equal intervals
meant that a slight geometrical imperfection - and hence, a slight
cosmological inharmony - resultcd.
Apart from brief experiments, then, China retained the original
system of twelve fiii based on a cycle of perfect fifths. And as
recently as AD 17 12 the Ch'ing Dynasty finally rejected the
principle of equal temperament once and for all. (This at the very
time that equal temperament was about to become acceptcd in the
West, through the work of J . S. Bach and others, as the firm basis
of virtually all Western music from then until now.) The dynasty
fully reverted t o the ancient system accredited to the first divine
ruler, Fu Hsi, of no less than four and a half thousand years earlier.
It is important to realize that every such decision during the
history of China, whenever possible alterations in the musical systenl
were under consideration, was treated with extreme caution :incl
conservatism. If even the slightest of changes was agreed upon. it
was done in the full belief that it would result in a definitr, p;~r;~llc*l
effect upon the f
~ of thc
~ nation
e
itself. For we must remvml1c.r:
the Chinese philosophy stated that innovations in the ton;il : t r l h
would ultimately becomepreciscb mirrored in society ; ~ I;irl:c.
t
I r l t III.
case of equal temperament, for example, the sagcs wotiltl 11;ivc
expected that its adoption, to increase the melcxlic pc~ssil)ilitic~~
of'

011

MUSIC IN CHINA

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

c.irthly music, but at the expense of geometrical alignment with the

heavens, would also be mirrored in an adjustment in society possibly towards a greater development of technology and material
progress, but at the expensc of spiritual attunement and the mystical
frame of mind. (Exactly the course of events in the West, incidentally, from around the time of the adoption of cqual temperament in the eighteenth century, make of it what we will. However,
one would certainly hesitate to denounce equal temperament, since it
so increases music's harmonic possibilities.)

THE LOSS OF THE LOGOS

For four and a half millennia the music and its civilization was maintained. And then . . . the musicfell into decline.
It happened during the Ch'ing Dynasty - the final dynasty - of
AD 1644-1 9 1 2 . To the ancient philosophers the decline of their
people's music would have been a tendency of vast and perilous
significance. Yet with the decline in the music during the Ch'ing
Dynasty, the civilization also deteriorated, just as the ancients
would have predicted it must; and therefore the ancicnt wisdom
itself was gradually forgotten. In other words, once a people have
lost such wisdom, they arc no longer wise enough to know that they
have lost it - a variation on the myopic man who cannot find his
glasscs (because he has not got them on). This is a dangerous closed
circle from which, once fallen prey to, thcrc is little likelihood of
return, as numerous historical examples testify. As the classical music
of China progressively withered, so also faded the ability of the
people to understand what this really meant according to the wise of
formcr times.
But how did the compromise and dissolution of the traditional
music begin in the first place? (Not merely a surface question, this.
H o w does any civilization and its arts begin to fall below the level
of their highest achievementsi)
Could it have been causcd by thc introduction into China of a
music more totally foreign than anything its people had ever known
beforc - that of the West? Even prior to the final Ch'ing Dynasty,
Roman church music had entered with the arrival of the first
Western missionaries. In time, Western secular music followed. N o
matter how legitimate and good the Mrestern music may have becn
in itself, it obviously had precious little in common with the Oriental
style. Being unable t o add to the traditional art, Western music
co~ddtherefore only pervert or supplant it. From the point of view
of maintaining the purity of China's own native music, safety might

67

I ~ . l v c *lain

in resisting an official acceptancc of Western music. The

could have been officially rejected. But the Ch'ing monarchs
ton~mitted what was, from the viewpoint of their ancestors, an
in(-t.cdibly grievous crror: with the emperor's blessing, Western
rr/\/riir)zents were introduced! And: Westerners were acccpted - as
pro/i.r.rors of music a t the imperial court!
In our search for the culprit responsible for the decline of China's
~ ~ w
music,
n the music of the West may be something of a rcd
I~cving,however. Despite the official acceptance of the foreign
~ ~ ~ u sthose
i c , European musicians who travelled t o China during the
:l~'ingDynasty reported that the music of the West was still not
.~~)~'reciated
there. And after all, it was far from being thc first time
111;ita foreign music had 'invaded' the land. One Chinesc source
I-cbvcalsthat in AD 8 1 no fewcr than seven foreign orchestras were
Iwing permanently maintained at the imperial court. N o lack of
Iro~cntialtonal subversion here! Of the so-called Seven Orchestras:
rlrlisic.

. . . one had come from Kaoli, a Tungus country; another from

India; a third from Buchara; a fourth from Kutcha in East
Turkistan, with twenty performers of mostly Western instruments, which had been established as early as AD 384 and was so
much in favour that the emperor tried t o bar it. Individual
musicians from Cambodia, Japan. Silla, Samarkand, Paikchei,
Kachgar and Turkey mingled in them. Thc 'scholars', puristic
defenders of the ancient music, protested; but in vain.I6
So robust had the traditional music and its associated philosophy
I)roved to be over the millennia, that even such an onslaught as this
(;lrne to nothing. Ultimately, the ancicnt music had always absorbed
what it could of foreign sounds, and, like a grgantic amoeba, spitting
c I l l t thc: indigestible remains of its prey, ejected the rest. There was
110 par ticular reason to have expected any more glorious a fate for
11ic mLlsic of the West. That it did gain a foothold, and that thc
.tl,tulllonal
....
music did decline, may wcll be due less to the alien
111tluenceof the Western music than t o a weakening of the hold of
111eancient philosophy over the people.
Then again. at least one contemporary writer (John Michrll, in
(.'IQ of Revelation published by Garnstone Press), looking .I[ r l ~ c .
prhblcrn of the decline from a more exalted level, has p o ~ ~ c I r ~ - ( ~ l
whethcr, ~ e r h a ~ sthe
, celestial harmonics which su.;~:tinrtl I I I C
vihrati,nnal mat,rix of the Chinese civilization had nor rl~crn\rlvr\
.,I I ivedl at the conclusion of their part in the syrnpl~olivo! rllr
1111ivc~r5
;e ...

0X

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Whatever its cause, that a decline was occurring became

progressively unmistakable. At around the middle of the 1800s the
classical drama, its music and its subject matter firmly rooted in the
time-honoured traditions, began to be replaced by the modern style
of Chinese drama, which met with greater popularity. In the field of
pure music meanwhile, the great classical modes were supplanted by
styles which were more popular, noisier, cheaper and i m i t a t i ~ e . ~
The fact remains that this decline in music was definitely
paralleled by a general decline in the civilization itself. The emperors
of the final dynasty, perceiving immense danger in the progressive
cheapening of the tonal arts, attempted t o direct music back to its
former state of idealistic conformity with the immutable principles
of the cosmos.
But without result.
In 1912 the imperial house which had governed China for the
incredible period of almost five thousand years at last came to an
end, being replaced by a republic. Yet from its beginning, the
republic was rocked by tumult and instability.
Western music had by now begun to be appreciated. Western
orchestras performed in China. and increasing numbers of European
music teachers settled there. Thc Chinese themselves learned t o
pcrform Western, rather than their own traditional, music. White
crooners crooned in clubs; jazz bands blew the blues in the H o n g
Kong and Shanghai bars.
But, alas, where was the hidden haad? Where the mysterious,
unseen influence to maintain stability throughout all 'the vicissitudes
of time, destruction, wars, foreign influences and independent
experiment'? (The ancient philosophy and its music was by now
almost non-existent.) The republic survived - not another five
thousand years, but less than fifty. Soon the remnants of thc
Nationalist forces were fleeing to the island now known as Taiwan,
and Mao Tse-tung was striding into Peking, emanating the stream
of red 'thinks' bubbles of his Thoughts the whle.
Of music and civilization we havc not yet attempted to establish
definitely which of the two leads thc way for the other. But, as in
the case of many other past civilizations, the saga of thc land of
China demonstrates clearly that the link between the two is an
intimate one.

THE USE OF SOUND IN MODERN CHINA

If we go in search of the tonal arts of mainland China as they exist
today, we find that they are largely based on the medium of the

MUSIC IN CHINA

69

And, believe it or not, the basic story-lines of tod;ty's operas

Il.rrluently derived from the productions of fornlcr times.
I I lwcvcr, slight changes have been made since the civil war and
( : ~ ~ r ~ ~ l l ivictory
t ~ n i s t of the late 1940s: in unquestioned wisclonl, the
I,l~l~crs
of the revolution have seen fit to replace the tradition:tl
1 1 1 I ,I.~gonists in
the operas. The original legendary, spirit u;tIly
f.lr.v,~tcdindividuals have been supplanted by uniform-clad 'workers'
. 1 1 i i 1 rcvolutionaries. The titles and story-lines have also I-)c-cn
.t~lj~ls~ed,
now being concerned with one of four basic themcs: (;I)
I r.volution, (b) political reform, (c) anti-Capitalism, and (d) praise of
1111~.or more prominent political figures, the particular names and
I.,c.rs changing with the changes in the political climate. The moilcrn
( :Ilincse concert-goer must choose between works such as the S<rc.red
Ill(rr Symphony, The Ming Tombs Reservoir Cantata and ballets stlc.11
.I\ The Red Detachment of Women. Strange t o say, faced with such
,111 inspiring and bewildering variety of permitted subject mattcr.
:lrinese musicians are not so noted these days for their degrcc of
~.c.;~tivity
and inspiration.
'There is also one other medium through which sound radiatcs
I I , I . L ~ from the nestled villages and seething cities of latter-day
( :I~ina.
make of it what we will ....
According, again, to the current political climate, almost the
c.ntire populace - from the youngest of schoolchildren to the eldest
I 11' workers. from Peking to the smallest of villages - is 'requested' to
ol,scrve a daily routine of anti-Capitalist songs and death-chants. In
this second half of the twentieth century, while our own
* . L hoolchildren were beginning the day with morning prayers and
llylnns to God, Chinese children and their eldcrs were ending theirs
with repeated, rhythmic, full-throated shouts for our death and
tlcstruction.
What was going on in their minds as they did (and still do) S O ?
What were the real and derpest motives of their rulers in orchestrati ~ these
~ g death-chants? Was it only that they wished to indoctrinatc
t l ~ cChinesc millions into an anti-Capitalist stance? Personally, 1
I,c.lievc that more was involved. W e may be witnessing here the surI;~cing on a gigantic scale of the deep-rooted, subconscious belicf,
present in perhaps all of us, that by vocalizing our desires WC cm
Ilc.lp make them occur.
But - dcath-chants? Black magic on an international sc;tlr? Of
c trursc. ns respectable citizens of the twentieth ccnrltry w r c.:innot
.~cllnitthe possibility of such things. Granted, thr ;~nc,ic<nrs
would
I I . I \ ~ ( * keen in no doubt. They would have seen tlic C : l ~ i r ~ c , \ c a c.ll;cntst o
I

IIN-I.,I.

.I!?

T H E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN CHINA

be an objective, if partly unconscious, attempt on a vast scale to

weaken and disintegrate the fabric of Western society through the
misuse of Cosmic Sound. The ancients would have believed in the
reality of the phenomenon, and that such magic could work: that
the chants might materialize their effects in innumerable ways - in
anything from the West's military defeat to its cconomic decline,
from its moral decay to the dividing of its unity between nations
and generations.
But of course, such notions must remain entirely unacceptable t o
us. living as we d o in this modern era of scientific enlightenment.
W e know that the practice of chanting can only be propaganda, or
mere superstition.
Even as we know that it was mere coincidence that, with the
disappearancc of China's ancient philosophy ;lnd music, the nation
dcgenerated from the c1assical opera tn thc 'dcatli-chant' within but

.111cla fifth t o the torso from whence emanated thc heart-beat of thc

70

/ , I#/ I

~~

li

llii

'
'

~~~l
l

few decades.

Praise be t o the glories of twcr~ticth-ccnturyscience and art! W e

know today that sound is nothins rnore than air vibrations, for n o w
w e live in a much wiser age than did thc ancient Chincse.
?
-Or dowe

...

~~1

Notes
+The legend of Ling

I d ~ 1 ~ iin
,

describing thc original pitch of the

h ~ n gchun<q convcys nlost poetically thc I,ogoic link betwecn

perfected consciou.;nc:s~ ; ~ n dthe perfcct foundation tonc: the original
tonc, it is attcstrcl, rn;~~ched
thc precise pitch of Ling Lun's voice

when he .sppote eli~lro~t

p'~sszon."

t Less down-to-c;~rtliand more esoteric aspects of Chincse life werc

;~l
For instance, the I Ching (Book of
also related t o m ~ ~ s i cprinciples.
Changes) scems to have been associ~~ted
at a fundamental level with
the mysticism of' rnnsic. Both the J Ching and the ;ulcicnt Chincse
philosophy o f music stinrc thc same system of numerology, geometry
and cosmology. And as those who have used the J Chirzg will know
or line c o n f i ~ r a t i o n s which symbolize
for themseIvcs, the
cosmic energies, and which configurations werc L I S C ~as symbols t o
indicate the eight classifications of Chinese instruments, are also
basic to the I Ching systcm of divination.

$ A similar cenrral relationship of the one to the other four was

recognized by the Christian Gnostics in respect of the fivc wounds
of the crucified Christ: four wounds t o the t w o hands and two fcct,

71

Word, even as the fifth string of the Chinese zither emanated the

krrrrcq. Similar symbolism relating to the number fivc is found in the

tliversc legends and religions of many regions of the globe.

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

73

'

111;ctmorality, and the personal desire t o improve the quality of

c.haracter, is not illogical o r pointless, but the surest way t o
11r.1:.on;ilfulfilment and t o the greater benefit of all

81~~t.'s

2.
The Twentieth Century:
The 'New Music'
T h e philosophical outlook of most composers today is simply
stated: the ideal is that there should be no ideals, and the rule must
be that there should be no rules.
In ancient China music was based upon the loftiest of philosophical concepts. T o d a y serious music is more devoid of idealistic
foundations than at any period during the history of man. I n ancient
China only certain rhythms, mclodics and modes were deemed to be
correct and beneficial. Today, as the listener t o modern music is only
too painfully aware, anything gocs.
From across the a w n s , thcsc t w o diametrically-opposed viewpoints confront each othcr head-on. And the question is: which is
corrcct? O r at least, which of the t w o approaches more closely to
the truth? Are the 'anything goes' twentieth-century composers truly
corrcct, and werc the Chinese hopelessly superstitious and irrational
t o have cautiously held their music within certain margins? O r wr-re
the Chinese corrcct in fact? Does music inevitably affect morality
and civilization, which would place many of our current composers,
in the extent of their danger t o society, firmly among the ranks of
thc terrorists and political agitators of our d a y ?
T h e dilemma of what is right and what is wrong in music is
basically a moral question. W e choose which direction music should
takc according t o our moral and spiritual outlook (or lack of it). It is
not the task of the present volume t o attempt t o prove the existence
of G o d ; neither t o dive into the complexities of moral philosophy.
Nevertheless, it would be helpfill t o outline t w o fundamental
postulates :

1 . that religious belief stems not from superstition, but from some
form of Higher Truth which lies at the core of all things, and in
which is found the origin of all the world's great religions;

the importancc of
1 1 i\ worth affirming, as in these
- . l ~ ~ ~ ' and
i ~ u amoral
l
idcals, for it is precisely in the abandoning of
, , I I ( 11 ideals that theemusic of the twentieth century has, for thc most
11.1r.1, departed from the inner direction of the music of the p;tst.
(lurs is an age in which nothing is accepted unquestioningly r - i ~1.1c.rin the realms of science, or of social traditions, or of music. All
. .
11.tsr practices and beliefs arc open t o question. Granted too, ~t IS
~nclccdacceptable, and even wise, t o reassess the established tradi1i011s of life, and those of music also. But what could [)c more
Ioolhardy than t o answer our o w n questions - with the wrong
.tnswers! Precisely this occurred at around the turn of the century
when science, society and the arts each supplanted their nineteenthchncurypredecessors with a new outlook which leaned far towarcls
I l ~ position
c
of complete materialism.
Let us unravel the story of how, in the world of music, this came
1 0 pass.
(

THE IDEmISM OF PRE-TWENTIETH-CENTURY

MUSIC
I'rior t o the opening of our present century, serious music had been
;tlmost invariably anchored upon spiritual ideals. Throughout the
Middle Ages serious music in the W e s t h a d been sustained as a
tradition only b y the Church. The Church used plainsong, organum
; ~ n dother forms of religious music; and it was from this purely
rcligious background that Western classical music emerged.
Irrespective of their particular religious leanings, the grcat composers of the classical and romantic eras werc all motivated in their
art by the highest of altruistic ; ~ n dsanctified ideals.
Liszt, for one, in his early cssay ' O n the Church Music of the
Future' (1834), revealed thc basic motivation which was to drive
him throughout the rernaindcr of his creative life. Music, he statcd.
contains a great power to move and inspire. Its beneficial influence
can affcct all of life, both within and without the church. Therefore
it could be imbued with a renewed purpose and conttnt, being
composed with the objective of returning mankind tn .in .lw;tr.cbncss
of the Spirit, and t o the true worship of God. 'COIII(',11oc1r 01'
deliverance, when poets and artists will forget thc pi~l~liiI with t.lirir
clcrnand for profane entertainment - D.T.] ;,11rl will I<II(,w one
\logan only: man and God.'

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77

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

Despite initially unfavourable reactions, however, technical

innovations continued. Throughout the latter half of the nineteenth
century there occurred changes in all the dimensions of tonal art.
Rhythm became more complex; composers took an interest in a
number of new instruments and strange tone colours; new musical
forms and structures appeared, such as the tone poem; new subject
matter was considered. Yet the most significant series of innovations
throughout the music of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries was
the gradual but continual evolution of harmony. And associated
with the harmonic innovations were changes in the use of key.
The key of a piece of music is that strangely compelling 'homing
instinct' by which the melody seems to revolve naturally around one
particular tone. For example, observe how the tune of 'God Save the
Queen' begins and ends on the same note. Often the key of a piece of
classical music is stated in its actual title, such as in 'String Quartet in A
major'. And in the same way that melodies seem to hang naturally
upon one central note, so too does the use of harmony. The practice of
. .
basing musical harmonics upon one key n~ote is kno wn as tomzlity
cc:ntury wc:find that
In the early Baroque music of thc s iitccnth
~
harmonies were usually based upon th r same 1.lome key from the
*:
LL
beginning to thc end of a movement. B111 -..J..l.
rlluuuniur,lr, LIIC transposition of the music from one key to another, gradually increased. Thc
early classical composers of the seventeenth ccntury practised
modulation within movements as a matter of coursc, but still only a t
certain well-defined dramatic moments. Beethoven modulated still
more freely, yet nevertheless with a continued respcct for the basic
'rules' of tonality. The tendency towards incrcascci modulation
reached its critical stage, however, with the arrival upon tt.le scene oIf
Richard Wagner. In Wagner's later works, mod11l;ction o,ccurred sc3
frequently that no real sense of key survived. Th'IS w;1c; a fatefu11
challenge to all thinking musicians; one of a mi~gnitudewhich
cannot be overestimated. Serious Western music hacl always been
firmly grounded upon the concept of tonality, no matter how
increasingly sophisticated the actual practice of tonality had become.
Yet Wagner, in Tristan and Isolde and other works, had questioned
the infringibility and inveteracy of the entire tradition. It was an
overt questioning which could not be merely forgotten or ignored
by the rcst of the musical world, any more than Einstcin's Theory of
Relativity could have been bypassed by the scientific community.
Again we find, this time in the case of Wagncr, that not all
questioning or transcending of past practices is necessarily wrong.
Wagner's use of continuous modulation and novel harmonics is

universally acknowledged to have been a major, beneficial and con;tructlve :itep forward for the world of tonal art. W a gncrs mot ives
Ir l composing his magnificent music-dramas were mo rally imp ecctble : to forge an art form which combined spiritualI and.~deleply
, i_c_ - c- - Io: - r ~ i ~ l i ~ hpoetry
ed
with a music beautiful and sublime. all for the
purposes of spiritually elevating the individual listener and bringing
about enlightened social change. H e introduced innovations into his
music because he felt them to be justificd in thc idcal pursuance of
these aims; his new, more complicated use of tonality tnnbled him
to manifest the particular and specific musical effccts ;{nd dramatic
impacts which he deemed necessary for his works.
Wagner's reasons for composing in the first placc, thcn, were
entirely altruistic. Hence they were in conformity with thosc of
Bach, Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Liszt (as wcll as
with those of the musical philosophers of ancient China). Had
Wagner's motives been adhered to and emulated by thc succeeding
generation of composers, Wagner's technical innovations would
have represented the climactic entrance into a new world of music music of perhaps equal or even greater beauty than the music of the
classical and romantic eras.
T o a large extent, however, the philosophy implicitly contained
within thc music of the turn of the century and thereafter was to be
of a different order - eventually of a very different order. And hence
the need for this chapter, that we may study just what twentiethcentury music has really comc to be about.

.&

THE REVOLUTION INTO MATERIALISM

Exactly what is the manner of consciousness or the motive behind
the 'new music' of our century? Perhaps it is not altogether possible
t o describe in one simple definition what it is. It remains possible,
however, to define in complctc certainty what it is not
As we have observed, it is usual for modern commentators t o
describe retrospectively the revolution which led to the 'new music'
as having been primarily a technical one. That is, the revolution is
thought to have revolved around all of the new ideas in harmony.
rhythm, form and timbre which emerged at that time. One point,
though : as trees combine to makc up a wood, and as individual ccllc
together form a complete human organism, so d o technical details,
on paper, go to make up a complete work of music. However, to sec
the wood we must broaden the scope of our vision beyond thc \i,qh~
of a single tree. Likewise. individual cells, alone, tell vcry littlc ;~INILIL
the entire human being; what his personality and appc;tr:lnct. ;Ire

...

7X

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

like. And in music, technical details rarely reveal a great deal about
t11c essential meaning or conveyed impression of the whole work.
Therefore let us ask: &!asthe revolution into the 'new music' merely
a revolution of technique? Does it not strike closer t o the actual
heart of the matter to realize that the most fundamental difference
between the music of the previous centuries and the 'new music' of
the twentieth century lay in the difference of their moral directionsi
The strcam of scrious Wcstern music had formerly followed the
contours of a philosophical landscapc which was at thc very lcast
genuinely altruistic, and often deeply spiritual. I t was as though the
musical stream itself had bcen unerringly impelled towards an
eventual ocean of transcendent, mystical fulfilment. But after 1 9 0 0 ,
rebellious waves burst the river banks, taking off in a number of
independent philosophical directions. A ncw hreed of musicians
appeared; these did not necessarily share thc samc artistic motives as
their prcdecessors. T h e great composers of the past had composed
for the sakc of the spiritual upliftment of their fellow men. But the
.
s hor from such firm moorings.
music of the ncw century raisc:d- ~ t dnc
The tonal arts were now art for art's sake. Tlle listener found his
..
attention to be focused by t hc 'new muslc U pon levels of being
1
1
which were not spiritual, bur merely mental,
emotional, and yes,
even physical.
The intellectual o r mcnt;tl content of music had once consistcd of
the sacred mathematics of Bach or the divine symbology of Mozart.
N o w this was replaccd by mere human intellectualism. Even by a
very early stage of thc twentieth ccntury, music appeared which
seemed t o have been composed primarily as an exposition of this or
that new harmonic or rhythmic technique. In the past, composers
had often cxpcrin~cntedfor the sake of improving their music; nowr
many composed music for the sake of experimenting. The divinc
intellect became supplanted by mortal mentalism.
Formerly, the emotional direction of music had hccn vertically
upward. The very purpose of the music had usually been t o direct
the feelings t o G o d , o r t o regions of lofty. altruistic contemplation.
horizontal
The 'new music' dirccted the feclings along a
,r. or t o the
plane: music evoked the rractions of one mortal t o
material environment. Works such as many of t h c ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ p o sofi ~ i o n s
elcctronic music might at first be thought, in fact, to have no real
'emotional content' at all. Rut to believe s o would be a mistake: all
music affects thc emotions. It is just that the kind of emotions which
are stirred by cold, heartless clectronic works are 1ikewi.c cold and
heartless.

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

79

'Tlie new movements in the world of inusic ;ilso dircctcd conto the physical level. Thcre arose a ncw fascination with
+c,io~~sness
I I I sheer
~
sensuousness of certain sounds, as for instance in much of
I I I ~work of Debussy. I t was almost as though sounds wc-rc no
Iongcr utilized for the sake of the music, but vice-vcrsa: n ~ ~ r ~ i c : t l
works were sometimes the glass cabinets, presented for thc s;tkr of
sllowing off the new collection of sonorities contained within.
The essential difference in the spiritual directions o i ci;~ssio;tl
I I I L I S ~ Cancl most serious twentieth-century music becomes strikingly
I Ilustrated by comparing works fmm the t w o different eras which
l - .. - - -,
~ I ~ C ~J. Lcertain
C
common purpose Take, for example, the diffcrencc
Iwtween Bcethoven's 'Pastoral' Symphony and the work of Edgar
Vart.se. Each composer attempted to render, through music, imprcssions of the objective world. Beethoven, however, chose that which
is beautiful: the countryside; whilst V a r k e , a ccntury later, chosc as
his subject matter the hustle and bustle of modern urban life.
Moreover, Beethoven idealized his subject matter, while V a i k e
emphasized thc ugly and inhuman aspects of city life. But above all,
the approach of Vari-sc towards his subject was merely 'horizontal':
his music portrays only the physical side of the city. Beethoven, on
the other hand, explicitly stated that his 'Pastoral' Symphony
described, not a two-point, horizontal relationship betwcen man and
his environment, but a three-point triaizgle composed of M a n , Nature
and G o d (as, indeed, is so beautifully apparent to all who hear the
work). T h e 'Pastoral' is intended not to portray Naturc alone, but
rather the Presence of G o d t~ithinNature. Thus Beethoven transcended materialism: with the addition of G o d to the man-environment relationship, an extra and vital vertical dimension imbucd thc
entire work with a hiphcr meaning. Again, it is this vertical, spiritual
dimension which is lacking in Ddxnsy's portrays? of the sea in his
La Mer. La Mer is nothing like as radically avant-garde as thc
output of VarPse, and yet still, c w n in Debussy's portrayal, we find
thc merely horizontal relatinnshiF. N o matter how artfully t h r h
musical components of L n M rr may have been wclded topethcr, r l l c
fact remains that the w n-k
~ is dis tinctly materialistic. L n Mvr.
describes the impressions convcyed by thc sra to man - o n rhr
I-..,
I I L ~ I U, u L not thc spiritual, levrls. / \ I I ~ I
physical, emotional and ~ I C.-,..l
hcrc we have the most hlndamental difference of ;ill I ~ r ~ w r r ~ i
twentieth-century music and the music of classicism ;~ncl rc)rrl;lllticism; here W C have the real nature of thc 'revolution' in nll~sit.
which took place aroimd the beginning of the prcscnt c c n ~ l ~ r -~yi l:r i t
it b'as d 'revolution' into materrdlistic humanism.

H0

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

In the study of history, when we come to examine the musical

histories of Greece, India and other ancient cultures, we encounter
this same revolution again and again as the same basic fall into
musical materialism has taken place within numerous historical
periods." W e shall discover that whenever and wherever such a
revolution has taken place, there has inevitably followed, within the
civilization as a whole, the same descent of spirituality and morality
into an unstable and brittle state devoid of permanent values.
One thing above all else characterized thc great music of ancient
China, India, Egypt and Greece, and later the music of Wcstcrn
classicism: that the fundamcntal purpose of music was conceived as
being the transcendence of former states of consciousness. Such
music always pointed the heart of man in the .f direction. And one
thing above all else characterized the styles of music which spiritual
idealists throughout the ages had viewed as being morally perilous:
irrcspeaive of whether such music was technically anarchistic, or
whether it completely conformed to the technical 'rules' of the age,
its moral direction was not upward. Such music began to make its
mark in Europe during the late 1800s. when idealism ( .f ) began to
be pushed aside by 'realism' (-=P), and evcn pessimism ( J. ). Let us
now trace the seeds of this revolution, turning our attention to the
work of specific corr
Mussorgsky ( l 8
[,is onc of thc first 'realists' to havc a
significant impact. ' I W d l l L LI) speak to man in a language of truth,'
he declared. But by 'truth', it must be noted, Mussorgsky did not
mean elevated, spiritual truth. Rather. as a 'realist', he desired to
express in tone form the 'real' world around himself - as he saw it.
'Life wherever it may be found, the truth however bitter it may be [my
italics- D.T.],' he said, adding: '- that is what I aspire to, that is
what I want, and I am afraid of failing.' And again : 'It is the people I
want to depict, sleeping, waking, eating, drinking . . . Again and
again they rise before me, huge, unvarnished, and with no tinsel
trappings. '
The point is, though, that one man's 'truth' is another man's
illusion - what the Hindus refer to as maya. Ultimately, truth is
singular; yet whenever any artist has set out to portray 'the true
world' his audience has inevitably finished up being served that
artist's own subjective view of the world. For an artist to 'portray
truth', when that truth is secular, means no more than to express his
own personality. Whereas Mussorgsky spoke deridingly about
'varnish' and 'tinsel trappings' in his portrayal of men, the idealists
such as Handel and Beethoven had consciously avoided depicting

T H E 'NEW MUSIC'

81

'1'0 t11t.111,it wits preferable to

111r imperfect, mortal nature of
~ ~ o ~ p i c t the
u r e divine spark within all 1111.11. wllic.11 t11cy hoped and
I)rlieved that their music would itself I1cIl1 L
.. I t is within
Mussorgsky1s works that serious Wester11 111
* I I I ~ Sfrom the
I'l;~neof idealism and divinity to the 1evc.l of I I I I I T ~ ~ IIR~ ~ . ~ . ~ o ~for
i;~Iity
virtually the first time.
Mussorgsky was largely self-taught, and g:lvchpm-io11sli~tlrhccd
I O the established rules of harmony, etc. as pr;tct iscxl ;t11(1 ;ttlllc~r~cd
to
elsewhere during his day. A ninetcrnthI I I I I ~ I C . ~ I I ,litc*k
Kerouac, he composed freely according to 111~
nd cliitarcc of
his mental and emotional being. If a tonal p
~rlclc.d riglir in
his head, accurately expressing his own ferlings, then ht- wrote it
down, irrespective of any rules of key or h;tr~iiouy. (liirnskyKorsakov, much shocked by this, very often 'correctcJ' Ivlussorgsky's compositions before they were performed.) Much in LIK J;cc:k
Kerouac, beat-poet style, since Mussorgsky's art reflcctcd ;t consciousness undisciplined by such notions as artistic correctnrss or
spiritual motive. the result was often the naked portrayal o f tliosc
less desirable levels of the human mind. Frequently, Mussorgsky's
tone-sequences convey emotions which are very much of a
downward direction - desolation, anguish and psychological pain.
Mussorgsky was also one of the earliest composers to place so much
emphasis on speech patterns in music - melodic sequences similar to
the sounds
when human beings ask a question, cxpras a
doubt, shout in anger or yelp with fear.
Such techniques were cmploycd within one of Mussorgsky's
relatively well-known orchrstral works, Night on Bald Mountaitz.
The impressions conveyed by this piece can best be described by
referring to its role within the Wait Disney cinematic production of
1940, Fantasia. In Fantasia, Disncly granted his animators complete
freedom to represent in animatccl scenes whatever the various pieces
of music chosen for the film cvokcd in their minds. J. S. Bach's
Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Ii)r instance, evoked for the Disney
artists, as it surely does for us all, ;ibstract patterns of mathematical
precision and cosmological rhythm. All of this became faithfully and spectacularly - outpicturcd upon the screen. Beethoven's
'Pastoral' Symphony, of course, was accompanied in the film by rhc
magical, pastoral scenes which this music suggests. T o a large cxtcrlt,
works of evcn instrumental music d o tend to suggest thc s;tmc
thoughts and images to different
Fantasin, then, nl;iclc
specific and raised fully to the conscious level the kind of' concc.pts
which the chosen pieces of music usually evoked in the 1istcnc.r.

;2

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

And Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain, then? What manner

af visual display did this give rise to within the film?
Accompanying Mussorgsky's piece, and fitting the music
perfectly, Chernabog, lord of evil and death, appears on the night of
the witches' Sabbath. Spirits, witches and vampires dance
frenziedly about. The skeletons of all those not buried in consecrated
ground are raised up. Finally, tiring of them all, Chernabog
condemns them all to a fiery pit. Each visual sequence faithfully
~arallelsthe eerie, sinister and monstrous soundtrack. Which brings
us to the question: why should anybody need to have such music
imposed upon them in the first place? Certainly Night on Bald
Mountain could be listened t o by individuals analysing how the
composer had applied this or that technique in creating the work; it
might always be studied by musicologists in the same way that we
study prehistoric remains or the strange customs of savages. But for
higher purposes this music has always been less than worthless.
Interestingly, Mussorgsky himself did become involved early in
life with spiritualism and psychic phenomena. His interest in these
subjects was, however, always in their more morbid aspects. Later,
at college, he disavowed them and declared himself an atheist. After
having been ruined financially he was forced t o keep himself by
taking a job as a minor clerk in the ministry of forestry and
waterways. This, and thc fact that his music met with little success
during his lifetime, crnbittcred him. Other composers, too, had
encountered difficulties during their careers, yet had persevered in
faith until thcir succcss finally arrived. Mussorgsky, however,
having become an alcoholic, died poverty-stricken and alone. It is
difficult not to pcrceive the reflection of his life and circumstances
within his music of 'truth'.
A still morr significant composer whose life and personal
weaknesses also dictated the final stages of his music was Mussorgsky's compatriot, Tchaikovsky ( 1 840-93). Though often lacking in
subtlery, Tchaikovsky was a master of melody. Beautiful tunes came
to him almost at will. These he would then skilfully weave together,
employing his almost unerring penchant for applying the perfect
instrumentation to cach tonal phrase. (Shostakovich was later to
declare that t o listen to a work by Tchaikovsky was equivalent to a
lesson in instrumentation.) His most successful and popular works
are the last three symphonies, the first piano concerto, and the three
great ballet suites, Swan Lake (1877), Sleepl~g3e~uty(1890) and

Nutcracker ( l 89 1).
In short, Tchaikovsky was as deserving as a man could be of the

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

83

title, Born Musician. So naturally did music of tlcc.1, hc;~utycome to

that there was, on the face of it, no net-,l 1 0 1 . liilii to have ever
!;one astray from the idealistic artistic prrcrpts of his classical
l~rcdecessors.
Throughout the entire span of his .1(1111t lilc. I~owrver,
'I'chaikovsky was a man tormented. For I I ~ was Iromoscxual.
l ~iwardlyhorrified with himself and his t e n d r ~ics.
~ t :{rid tnlh;~rrasscd
i l l the eyes of those who shared his secret, TI 11,likovskyncvc~srllclcss
I';~iled to overcome his scxual inclinatio~~.,llis l ~ o ~ t ~ o ~ c - x ~ ~ ; ~ l i ~ y
1,ccame the obsessive defect of his life, thc 1o1.111c~nti11g
~lcsr~on
III;IL
would allow him no peace of mind, 110 Irc.cdol~l 1'1.0111 sclfcondemnation. Lacking a family of his own, ; I I I ~pcrh;~psc1rivc.n by
the forces inherent in his moral weakness, tl~e.colnposcr rr;~vcllcd
relentlessly, year after year. A marriage enterctl into for the sakr o f
normalizing his image in the eyes of himsrlf and others clidcd
disastrously: Tchaikovsky himself came to the vcrgc of ;I tots1
llervous breakdown, and the spouse of the unfulfilled match finislicd
her life in a lunatic asylum. Always nervous and highly strung, tllc
composer found his life to be a ceaseless struggle against rlioral
weakness and over-emotionalism. And it was a struggle
- - from which,
ultimately, he failed to emerge as victor.
Tchaikovsky's failure to overcome his imperfect traits stamped its
mark inexorably upon the last three of his six symphonies. Whilst at
work upon his famous ballet suites, the subject matter of the ballets
had dictated the emotional tone of the music for him; but the
symphonies were a different matter. In the symphonies he had, as he
said himself, the total freedom to compose whatever came naturally
to him. Thus, the symphonies became the most personalized and
introspective of all of his most important works. The first three of
the six, while accomplished technically, are nevertheless lacking in
that distinct quality of uniqumcss which goes t o make a piece of
music eternally memorable. With the compostion of his Fourth
Symphony (1877-8) at thc age of 37, however, Tchaikovsky
learnec4 to fully impose hi S own In dividuality upon the symphonic
T. The work was pr.ogramm: tic and intensely personal. This,
mediu~
and th e two symphonies 11$,U follovved, were to be his most popul;ir
- ..l..
.-l
---WOTKS within the genre; fur~llc~rrlure,
they were genuinely unic!,lc in
content as well as being masterfully executed technically They
exerted a real impact and influence upon the Russian iiricl o111c.r
European composers of his time, and are still frequently prrfornlcd
in our own day.
Unfortunately, however, these last three symphonic.; ;we 1;11iJ;tllilli

- -

85

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

mentally based upon overwhelming sentiments of ... pessimism and

failure.
If music patterns d o hold a powerful sway over life patterns, then
Tchaikovsky's last three symphonies were a most inopportune
manifestation for the composer to have left to posterity. There can
be no doubt at all of the judgement which Confucius and his contemporaries would have passed upon these works. The basic philosophical theme of each of them is that which Tchaikovsky, in his
letters and diarics, called 'Fate'. Each in their own way, the three
symphonies tcll the story of 'Fate' and its relationship to the
individual. Yct the individual is not so much abstract 'man' as
Tchaikovsky himself. And Tchaikovsky's 'Fate' is not so much of a
Universal Purpose or prc-ordained destiny as it is his personal subjection to the homosexuality which so tormented his conscience.
(Throughout his diaries the issue of his sexuality is always referred
to in a half-vriled manner as 'my Fate' or 'XXX'.)
Of the Fourth Symphony, Tchaikovsky wrote to Nadezhda von
Meck. his bencfactress :

Al~cr the manner of Beethoven's cl;tssic. Fifth Symphony,

l', Il;likovsky uses the word 'Fate' in rcfcrct~ccto rh;tt which over~ u ~ w t the
~ r s human individual. But w r must I)c c.;trcf~~l
lirrc of the
~.lll,~lr
trap, which Tchaikovsky fell prcy to, o f mist;tking the two
't;.~tcs'for one and the same thing. Berthovcn ;tnrl 'fcli;iikovsky
. I ~ I I I ; Luse
~ ~ the
~
same word in reference t o t w o vcry diffrrcnt - cvcn
. ~ l ~ ~ ; o l i topposing
tel~
- things. 'Fate'. which n1;lnifcsts ;is ;L thcntc in
I\vrthoven's Fifth Symphony, as well as in a numbrr of hi5 otlirr
works, stands for that which is greater than thc mort;~lindividi~;tl.I n
I\c.rthoven's marvellous Fifth Symphony the proccss i.; dcscl.il)cd of
1I1c confrontation between mortal and irnmort:tl. m;un ; L I I ~tllc
S~~lxeme.
The individual soul, in this work of Beethoven, finds itself
. I ( the point where a choice must be made: to obey the Will o1'C;od.
. I I I ~thus evolve, or t o stubbornly hold on to its own inipcrfcct r-ritits
. I I I indulgences.
~
At length, the individual learns that i r ) surrcndcr to
I IIC Will of the Supreme is actually no loss of selfhood at all, 1711~the
tloorway to a far more glorious and meaningful existrncc." l'hc
symphony concludes on a magnificent note of triumphant victory.
Tchaikovsky's 'Fate', on the other hand, relates to that vcry
Illanner of mortal imperfection which remains forever outsidc of' thc
Will of the Supreme. In compensation for his personal failure to
overcome his imperfections, Tchaikovsky erroneously called then1
'Fate', as though t o infer that their existence was divinely decreed
and immutable. Yet his 'Fate' is ultimately a self-imposed one; had
hc been of stronger will he might have overcome his condition,
cither suppressing or sublimating it. Tchaikovsky's final symphonies
I~eingbuilt organically around his concept of an inexorable, inescapable doom, the Russian composer thereby gained the unfortunate
distinction of becoming tlic first major musician to conclude a
symphony with the overwhelming scnse, not of victory, but of
defeat. The occurrence boded nluch ill for the future of the art.
The programme of his next symphony, the fifth, Tchaikovsky
would not reveal. But in onc of his notebooks a rough sketch was
discovered for the first movcnlcnt, which gives us some idea of thc
meaning of the whole. His notc's read:

H4

The introduction is the seed of thc whole symphony, beyond

question the main I ~ C ; L . This is F'llr, tlic fatal force which
prevents OLU hopes of h;~ppiness from bcing realized, which
watches jealously t o sec that our bliss and pcacc arc not complete
and imclouded, which, like the Sword of Damoclcs, is suspended
over the head and pcrpctually poisons the soul. It is inescapable
and it can never be overcome. One must submit to it and to futile
yearning. The gloomy, despairing feeling grows stronger and
more burning.. .
In the nest scction of the symphony, Tchaikovsky rcldtes, the soul
turns from this grim reality into a world of subjective dreams of
happiness - but 'Fate' awakens one harshly. 'There is no haven,' he
mourned in his letter. 'Drift upon that sea until it engulfs and submerges you in its depths. That, approximately, is the programme of
the first movement.'
This was the grim picture of life which Tchaikovsky painted in
the Fourth Symphony. H e himself thought the picture to be objective, a true depiction of the nature of reality; but many people, of his
day and our own, would surely argue that life can be far more fulfilling and joyful. And yet, by attuning ourselves to the tones of such
music, even without consciously knowing the programme, we automatically absorb its philosophy of submission and despair.

Introduction. Complete rcsignation before Fate, or. which is the

same, before the inscr11t;tble predestination of Providcltc.~.
Allegro. (I) Murmurs, doubts, plaints, reproaches :tg;iinrl
XXX ...
'l'he programme of the final Sixth Symphony was again unrrvc;~lrcl.

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

86

but the music itself leaves the general meaning of the work in no
doubt. 'Fate' is now compeltely submitted to: a few tonal attempts
to rise above or forget that which clouded the composer's entire life
are soon brushed aside by the return of passages of utter and
desolate melancholy. Though not revealing the programme,
Tchaikovsky did write that the symphony 'is permeated with subjeccomposing it in my mind, I wept copiously.' The
tive feeling
final movement concludes the work with the unmistakable feeling of
death. Considered his greatest symphony, it also sounds, as it were,
the precise keynote of Tchaikovsky's life.
The symphony was first performed on 2 8 October, 1893, conducted by the composer himself. Tchaikovsky decided soon aft er
that he would call the Sixth the 'Pathetic' Symphon:y - a tit:le
which, in the original Russian, refers t o emotional suffering. Eight
days following its first performance Tchaikovsky was dead.
The cause of the death has long been thought to have been
cholera. Recent evidence, however, indicates that his death had to
do with the confluence of three factors : his expanding fame, his continuing homosexuality, and the high csteem in which the Czar was
increasingly, and publically, regarding him. T o understand what
these three f a c t ~ r sled to, it is necessary to realize the intense
patriotism and loy;~ltytc-)wards their Head of State which many
people felt in thosr days. A number of Tchaikovsky's colleagues and
associates. perceiving that the secret life of the composer might soon
become exposed to the world, feared that this could prove
disastrously embarrassing to the Czar. Forming a kangaroo court,
they decided th;lt thr composer should prevent this from happening
in the sures,t way possible: by taking his life. Tchaikovsky, totally
di!$graced a nd crr~shc.dby self-condemnation, did so. Following this,
hi:j friends rnclin ;irnateurishly engaged in a cover-up to protect the
composer's own rrputation, giving the death the appearance of
having been n;itt~riil.
As he had writtcn of the theme of the Fourth Sy~llpl~ony
fifteen
years earlier, Tc11;rikovsky had drifted upon the sen OS llis 'incscapable Fate' until it had engulfed and submerged him t o its drpths.
Many earlier composers had displayed imperfca traits of one
kind or another, yct they had nevertheless striven ceaselesslv to
perfect themselves. In their music they had portr:iyed only 'th at
which is divine an(.lbeautif ul in life; only that which the COnI
l 1
12sciousness of man snoulu
always
endeavour to move towarus.
In
Tchaikovskyls last three symphonies, however, we are calied to
move in another, and less enlightened, direction. What can, at least,

...

'

I,r sxid of them is that thcy 111Tcr ;I IIIOSI insrrlrrl-ivc lcsson: that
r;~rcly,if ever, can the work of' ;in ; ~ I - Iis1 risc .tl~ovt.t llr ~ n ; ~direction
in

01' his own consciousness. It is tlcn~l>rl~~l

I ~ ~ : I .II ~ l ~ ; ~ s ~ c nus
. r l sic
i ~ lcan
rvrr result where the heart and lnin~l01 111c~lli~sic.i;~n
; ~ r 11ot
c tllrmsrlvcs, for the main part, so rn;tstcrctl. '1'1-ll;~ikovskv111c n1;ln was
I c )m apart by the contradictions W it hi11 h i~rlsr
lisil sot~ghtto
lilt. in miwic
so;~r;the flesh was fallow for the tall. '
'I'chaikovsky often brought forth hc:ii~ry, I I ~r l r v r r . ;c1 r:iinc.ct thc
Ilcights of true spirituality, and eventi~;~lly,
in
I;~st.~ y t ~ ~ l ~ l l o lie
nics,
hccame the instrument of the music ol' dchp;tir silc.li ,IS 11;15 l ~ ~to ~
I>cthe deadliest of plagues to numerous civiliz;rtio~~s
I)clorcs 0111. own.
All of which brings us to what happened lirxr. .. .

DEBUSSY POINTS THE - OR A - WAY

Less than seven years after the death of Tchaikovsk y. .ill(. W I brltl
found itself at 3 1 December, 1899. Already, a substaintl:il nrlrl1 1 1 ) ~
of radical composers were preparing themselves to nlark thc I I C W
century with the onset of a new music.
The modern composer: no more shackles of tradition to hold hinl
back! N o Confucius to whisper annoying words of warning in his
ear or to storm out of the court in
One minute to midnight,
3 1 December, 1 8 9 9 : the old era, with its superstitious spiritual
standards, was about to become a memory of the past. So many
rules now cried out to be broken! S o many sounds there were which
had not yet been sounded ! So many moods which the composers of
the past had refrained from cxprrssing! And now it could be done.
N o w it could all be donc! N a w ~ t ! ~ t h i ncould
g
be done!
One minute past midnight, I January. 1900: and the new
musicians charged forth into t l ~ rnew century like rioting students
into the streets. With crics for xrtistic 'freedom', they overturned
. .
;isted from ancient times even
those 'naive' beliefs which
sic affect:; morality, that certain
into the nineteenth century rhe notic3n was derided that,
chords should never be st
_^l
_.
according to its form and C O I I T t . 1 1 ~ . Lurlal
arL could be responsible for
the disintegration of a civili~;ilion.Wherever the idea surfaced it
was set afire; 'absolutely tat king in any scientific basis!' camc rllc
shouts of outrage. Virtually ;l11 discussion of the effects of musit.
upon the being of man disnFLPcared fr om the textbooks.
The creative years of Cl;,.ude Debussy (1862-1 9 1 8) wcrc sprc;~cl
C ,
L, ,
,
,
of the revolution, ;is tllc. oIc1
precisely over this period ol
Llll
century gave way to the ne W. O n th e alternatives of tratlition 01.01
unlimited artistic licencc Debussy ma d e his opinions pl;iin. ' I ;tlw;ry\
^..L

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

try to free music from the barren traditions which stifle it. I am for
liberty,' he declared. And, added the Frenchman: 'Music by its very
nature is free. Every sound you hear around you can be reproduced.
Everything that the keen ear perceives in the rhythms of the surrounding world can be represented musically.' Debussy's interest was never
in the f direction, but in the + direction: his music always told
of the physical, emotional and mental conditions of the world around
and within himself, no matter how talented and unique his portrayal
of these realms may have been.
The central characteristic of Debussy's music, even as he
progressed through sevcral different stages of his art, remained an
almost tangible sensuousness. And, interestingly, it was a trait far
from lacking in the man himself. All biographies tell of his profoundly feline nature. Debussy walked and moved
about like a cat;
during the course of his life he kept scc3res of cats as pets ; he bought
feline ornaments (and this, even whcn he was F~ennilessand hungry,
and the ornaments cost whatever lirtlc money he had just earned);
he made a point of frequenting the n
rarlslan rendezvous, Le Chat
Nozr; and the composer even conspired to be born a Leo. That the
cat is also tgditionally an animal of eerie mystery, being, for
example, the usual famili~rof witches, may also have had some
relevance within Debussy's cnigrnatic psyche.
Such points as the exceptionally sensuous nature of Dcbussy are
not without thcir significance. As WC trace, in this book, the
relationships bctwccn music and human life, it becomes
progressively clear that the style of a piccc of music depends to a
large degree upon thc character of the composer himself. All forms
of artistic creation are a portrayal of some level of the inner self of
the creator. And so, if music patterns should indeed be found to
affect life patterns, biographical details of those composers whose
music is still playedI today can become extremely important to us.
They may well hint t o us wh at the outer effects upon society of that
composer's music may be. AIld the importance of Debussy in deter.r
mining the nature or
~wcnrieth-century music is inestimable: not
only is his own music still played, but, even more importantly, his
works effectively directed the coursc of much subsequent music by
other composers.
This feline Frenchman was also a poet. His literary works are
characterized, as Corinnc Heline has dcscribed them, as being 'of
night and of dawn, of moonlight and of velvet shadows, of mists
and of perfumes'.1s Further, Debussy also took an interest in
occultism. And as it so happcns, his output of music can only be

.I,I ,lr;llc.lycategorized in occult terms.

I'xl?cricnced occultists often speak of an 'astral' plane of
~.ui.i(c.ncc, which corresponds closely to the purgatory of
:,ltl~r,licism.The lower reaches of the astral plane are dcscribed as
1win.c
, , realms of illusion, of ill-defined shadows, of lost souls and of
' * l l..lllgc )erils. Ultimately, the astral plane results from a correspont1111g
stat e of consciousness - an 'astral' consciousness, as it were. A
.
' - 1
l y \ ~ l c ; u cxample of an 'astral' state of mind is that induced by
Il.~ll~~cinogenic
drugs. And this gives a good idea of the kind of art
which can be expected to result from the astral consciousness. Astral
-11.ris illusory rather than objective, sensuously seductive rather than
,i:cnuinely spiritual. And it is in such a way, through the use of the
,cdjective 'astral', that Debussy's art can most accurately be defined.
Generally considered to be Debussy's most accomplished work is
111c opera Pellias and Milisande, upon which the composer was
engaged from the age of thirty-one until he was forty. T o call in and
ensure an unbiased viewpoint, let us quote from the brief description
of this opera in the Larousse Encyclopedia of M u s ~ c 'where
~,
we find
reference to, 'its dream-like quality, its enigmatic characters and
settings in a never-never land . the other-worldliness of the text
... a mysterious cjrchestral score'. T o which is added the comment
that, 'it is devoid of any definite action and the characters themselves are unreal'(!).
In his personal life, Debussy also maintained actual occult
contacts. It is not so widely known that he was for years the head of
the secret society, the Priory of Sion. This bizarre and professedly
ancient group (still in existence today) believe themselves to be the
geneaological offspring of Jesus Christ, who is supposed to have
married. They are dcdicatcd t o thc overthrow of all European
governments, that the line;cgr of Christ might step into power.
'
Moreover, in his later year
y became an intense admirer of
the works of Edgar Allcl
be's a n is thrice as astral as
anything of Debussyls. H is
antasy yarns are still among the
most potently effective storirs of evil and of diabolical terrors in
existence. Such was Debussy's fascination with Poe's tales that hc
set about composing a scrics of operas based upon them. W h ; ~ r
manner of music might be expcct from a composer who had allowrtl
his consciousness to beconic seduced by such writings? A.; i t
happens. we shall never know: Debussy was still at work rlpoli 1 1 1 ~
operas when he was finally overtaken by the cancer whic.l~ I l : t t l
threatened him with death since his thirties. His dc:~th
l<c.rable one, and he greeted it with intense bitterness. Thc
(11. ;I

XX

'

..

-'

00

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

chilling wedding between the shadowy literature of Poe and the

already powerfully influential music of Debussy seemed to have
evoked Fate itself in resistance.

11111'.11

91

. 1 1 1 ncw
~
musical culture fell prone to over-technicality ,ind an

~~icillating
hunger for sensationalism. For a f ~ wyedrs
11 ~lli.rc,is~ngl~
nervous, decadent and materialistic art rt~l(-dthe
I 111
01 the new output of music, until the outbreak of 111( t71sst
\\'I I I lil War put an end to an entire era of human history. Alltl yct,
I~lllowl~lg
these earllest stages of the non-idealist music, what w,ts to
~ I I I Vnext? As Paul Henry Ling puts it:
11

1.1

Il r - l l t ,

111

$-.I

IMPRESSIONISM VS. EXPRESSIONISM

As a quasi-reaction against the impressionistic music of Debussy and
other composers there arose a music of equally uncertain spiritual
value which was by nature expressionistic. The impressionists had at
least been content to takc the music of the eighteenth and nineteenth
centuries, with its tonality, as a starting point, even though from
there they allowed a good deal of innovation and extrapolation to
dictate new musical directions. N o matter how radical, impressionistic music was still, at its root, tonal. But the new breed, the
expressionists, felt moved to call the entire preceding tradition into
question. New systems of tonality and harmony were tried out,
while whatever forms and rules music had previously conformed to
were irrelevant to the expressionists. O r more - something t o be
particularly avoided.
In his authoritative book, Music in Western Civilixation, Paul
Henry Ling comments :
The impressionist abandons himsclf; the cxpressionist seeks the
utmost concentration .. . Against thc worldly, hcdonistic nature
of impressionism, cxprcssionism oppostd the unnatural, the
dashing, the torturing . .. In its most uncompromising utterances
expressionism carried the anti-romantic zeal to the point where it
refused to recognize sentiments, thus basing its new aesthetic
doctrine on the mental stage of emotional suspension

...

. . the
emotion of avoiding er notion^'.^^
In a century which has so often granted Wcstcrn nations, at
election time, the 'freedom' of choosing between two equally uninspiring and insincere political party-leaders, ni~isiclovers found
themselves confrontcd with a choicc between two schools of music
which were of equal abhorrence t o the spiritiinl idealist. Though
some good and spiritual music appeared under the impressionist
banner, for the most part the 'choice' between the two schools represented thc equivalent in the world of art of an election campaign
fought betwecn Marx and Mussolini.
Yct it was still only the beginning. Having been cast adrift from
the spiritual elements and upward striving cssential for all great

-T o which LAng perspicaciously adds that this was 'really.

t I

Ncw life could be infused into thc music of this rapidly i l i \ i ~ ~ ~c-!:ratingworld only by an even more nervous, sophisticalc.J ,111d
\ l ~ r c h a r ~ eemphasis
d
on the already overtaxed elements ol cif(-cl
.tnJ technique. Experiment then became the final aim .20

..

'1'1 I E SERIALISTS

I1.d they possessed the seismological equipment t o d o so, thc hcirn.

1e.t.;
of 1874 would no doubt have registered a seismic dist~lr.l).tnc-c*

o l high degree on the Richter scale emanating from the region o!'

:I~inaduring that year: the bodies of thousands of ancient (:l~i~~c.sr

I,l~ilosophers
energetically turning over in their tombs at the birrl~in
Vicnna of Arnold Schoenberg. For during the course of his carccr.
Sc,lloenberg was to renounce the entire concept of tonality for the
III.SI. time in human history.
Tonality, :the practice of basing music upon one particular kcy,
t l ~ rmelodies and harmonies all gravitating around that key, had
I,i.cn an inherent aspect of music since the beginning of recorded
Ilistory. The ancients believed that the key which was used for a
piece of music had tremendous cosmological significance. W e have
scen how the Chinese used whatever key they believed to be the
c;lrthly reflection of the particular Cosmic Tone which was
sounding upon the earth at thc time of the musical performance. In
this way, the tonality of all Chincsc music became associated with
;~strologicalTonality and the harmonic relationships between the
signs of the zodiac. Yet even in modern times most music remains
tonal in nature, for there arc also very practical artistic reasons for
the use of tonality. There arc special relationships betwcen thc
'tonic' or keynote of a piecc of music and the other notes such 2s
those removed from it by an interval of a fifth or of a fourth. Thc.
note-relationships which arc the basis of tonality are grounded upon
ir~
fundamental mathematical and aesthetic principles. This rcs~~lts
the fact that tonal music automatically 'sounds right' t c ~the I r u t ~ l i t r l
c.;lr, whcrcas music which is not tonal, at least Llptrn c-btlr f'irsr hc;irillg
i t . sounds incorrect and unmusical.

j2

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Children all over the world, when they first begin t o speak or
sing, d o so in mclodics bascd firmly upon tonal intervals. T h e
harmonic and melodic principles of tonality, then, seem t o be by n o
means arbitrary o r theoretical, but arc naturally meaningful t o the
human psyche. In fact, scicntific research has discovercd that the
traditional harmonic intervals and chords really arc sprcial: the
physical study of sound vibrations has confirmed that traditional
tonality conforms t o certain unique and objective vibrational
relationships between sound-pitches. Moreover, these same
mathematical relationships have been found t o be present
throughout many and diverse phenomena of nature, in everything
from the laws of physics to the geomctry and the ratios present in
the forms of living organisms. I t is only one small step from all of
this t o the postulate that the ancients were correct: that there truly is
something about tonal music which puts it in tune with the entire
universe, thus making it a real source of hcaling and regencration.
W e can see, therefore, what might underlie the agc-old concept that
some music is objectively 'right' o r 'correci.' while other forms of
music are wrong and evcn d;~ngcrous.11' tonal music hcals and
regenerates the body, the mind, ;111el soc.ic.ty ;is ;i whole, then atonal
music might be expected t o dc) t l ~ ci)pposi~c..
I t was due t o the f;lct t h ; ~ tton;~lrni~\iccomcs so n;~turallyt o man
that, even whcn the ancient wisdoni itself hitrl i ; ~ d c dfrom the
memory of the r;tcc. thc grcat classical Wcstrrn c.oniposcrs continucd to create music within the principles o f to~l;tlityand the
diatonic scale. In moving fully outside of this traclitional system,
Schoenberg had made a momentous move indccd. M a n y fellow
composers of thc twentieth century hailcd i r :is a great
breakthrough. It is dubious, however, whechcr RcctIio\,en or Bach
would everhavc d o ~ so.
e And had they still heen ,,rc,scnt t o witness
the evcnt, the reaction of thc sages of antiquity is c.t:rt;tin: their conclusion would have been that, provided that Scl~oniberg'smusic
caught on and became sufficiently popular, the keys of IVcstcrn
civilization were numbered.
Schoenberg's music encompassed several diffcl-rnt periods. I n the
first of them tonality, whilc present, became incrc;~singlyuncertain.
Then, from around 1908, he entcrcd a seconrl pied in which
atonality reigned. This has been callcd 'thc phase of unlimited
anarchy and liberty' (the very concept bcing in direct contradiction
t o the principles of spiritual idealism). In this
thc seven major
and fivz minor notes of the scale bccame simply twelvr notcs a
semitone apart. Thc twclvc notes were all treated equally, n o form

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

93

Io!:ic;el organization being placed upon thcm. Thus, the result;~nt

was in n o key, and its melody and harmony paid 1 1 0
ii~~ta~ic.
.~ll(-~!i;ince
t o the traditional emphasis upon thc intervals of thc fif~ll.
I ll(.'loilrth. and so on.
Next, in the important third pcriod of his carecr, Schixnbc.~,~:
I rpl;~ccdhis previous 'unlimited anarchy' with a ncw system of nc ) I c,
tlr.!:;cnization of his o w n invention, which came to be call(xl
'~.c.ri;tlism'.Under the scrialist system, thc twclve notcs of the oct;ivc.
~vc.1.carranged into a ccrtain sequential order, and this order thrm
I)c,c.;~n~e
the series or 'tonc-row' upon which an entire piece of mubmlc
w ; ~ sbased. T h e series of notes could be played forwards 0 1
ds, in its entirety o r only partially, and in inverted for111
:e the series contained the entire twelve notes in a pl,~.
led order, it was thereforc not possible t o play a notr . I
~~c.c.ond
time within the sequence before all the other notes had ber.11
%.oclnded.Webern, Berg and others also adopted the serialist t c c h ~ ~ i
cl11c from Schoenberg, and the school of 'twelvc-note composer-\'
W;IS born.
Though with the introduction of serialism Schoenberg h . ~ t l
reverted from absolute anarchy to some form of logical order, till
rcchnique neverthelcss poscs a number of important philosophic.;~l
clucstions. For example, what if there truly are some manner 01
(:osmic Tones, and that works of music attune thcmsclvcs t o o ~ ~ c .
l>;~ticular
Tone through thc :uc of tonality? W h a t would this mean
for atonality, as practisecl i n scrialism, which does not make use rd'
kcynotcs? Could it
hc that. in abandoning the system OF
tonal music which comcs sn nntrlr;illy t o man, Schoenberg had,
unwittingly or otherwisr. :~ttcmptccl t o usurp divine Will with
human will? Could systcms such ;IS sc-ri~ilismrepresent the rebellion,
at some lcvel of the humnri p.;yc.lic, against the Harmony of the
-. .
Spheres r7
In his latcr years, Schocnl>crg's rl~irciphase of strict serialism gavc
urn t o a less rigid 51yl(. in which, while serialism was mainiiclncu, clements of tonality wrrc increasingly introduced. Upon first
founding the method. tlic originator of scrialism had at thc r i m t
been criticized by the craclitio~~;~lists.
But serialism had sincc thr.rl
bccome well established in t h c musical world. Now. for abandonill!:
it in its pure form, Schoenhrrg was criticized almost as much ag:iitl!

ENTER: THE COMMANDOS

Music normally evolve4 as an almost 'natural' drvrlrrpn~c.nl.(Inc.
composer after another extrapolating and building irpon I II(* i t l ~ . . 11~ ~ ~
(

94

TI-IE 'NEW MUSIC'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

his predecessors. T o the esoterically-minded thinker, however, the

coming of the 'new music' in the early years of this century is particularly intriguing in that, in many respects, it did not so much
evolve as appear as though from nowhere. For centuries at a time
during earlier periods of world history the face of music had
changed comparatively little. A composer had once felt it his prime
responsibility to create new compositions of music. But in the case of
the 'new music' the emphasis radically shifted: the major purpose
became to create ncw k2nd.r of music altogether. Now it was as
though a veritable wave of individuals were born in the late
nineteenth century who all shared the inherent trait of being
seemingly incapable of conforming to the traditional standards and purposes - of the tonal arts.
Nobody illustratcs this factor of the 'wave phenomenon' more
than does Charles Ives .(l 874-19 54), America's first composer of
real significance. Born and raised in Danbury, Connecticut, Ives
was almost totally cut off from the radical musical developments
which were taking place in Europc. Ivcs studied music at Yale
University at around the turn of t h c ccritur) I, but in later years had
little way of knowing what was t;&kingpla ce musically across the
- ~ .
work he heard none
Atlantic. During these years o f his own crea~ive
of the music of Schoenberg or Hindemith, and of Stravinsky only
The Firehid and The Ni'qhtingale. And yet it was as though the
composers of thc ' * l * . t ~ r n~usic'had been some sort of commando
squad trained icI cithcr heaven or hell (depending upon one's
viewpoint) t o p;trachute into Europe and rc-channel the entire
. . - , l *Ln*
L l l d L Ives' parachute had been caught in an
course of music, drru
almighty gust o f wind which had blown him off course t o the other
side of the Atl;tntic. For there. alone and in virtual seclusion from
any other nii~sician or any outside influence, Ives quite independently devclopcd bi-tonality, polytonality, atonality, multiple
rhythms or poly rhythms, the use of chance factors within music, and
all the other tr;cppinps of the 'new music'. In his output, Ives not
only paralleled. hut even preceded such devclopmcnts as they took
place upon European soil.
As Ives oncc wrotc to his copyist upon sending him a new work:
~

..L

"V

C.,

'Mr Price. Please don't try to make things nice. All the wrong
notes are right. '
And again, Ives' jotted comment on the margm of the manuscript
of his Second String Quartet:

9j

a Cadcnz~it c ~play or n o t to pl:iy ! II' I,l:~yc~J,

to be played
not a nice one - b ~ cvcnly,
~ t
prcc.isc-ly I I I I I I I I I S ~ ~ ,;is
;~~

. . ;IS
.I\

I : ullvrirncnt was thc nanic of thc g;tnle; ; i l l cl I vc's tried out any
I,.,llnical innovation in onc composition rllr i n ~ ~ o v ; ~w;is
~ i oscldonl
~l
Yet to
1c.111r11c.d
to in his music in anything likc rllc: s;iInc W ;
;onant,
I I W c;~rsof his contemporaries, Ives' music vV;LSnot m
.
.l. .
1,111 m;~d.Ives was trying to reflect in muslr 1 1 1 ~ul>>c,n;tllrcs; ~ n d
*.t.trk realities of the world around him. Yes - in ;I w;cy this w;~s
ro
h.111ssc~rgsk~'s
'realism' all over again, and ng;~inin con~r;~cliction
I 111. greatest musicians of all earlicr cpochs o f 11rtltl;in I~iscorywho
11.1tl sought, through music, to impose ordcr ;uld nlc.;ilring lipon
(..lrrl~ly
chaos.
It may tell us something about the psychological el'fi.c>rsof Ivcs'
O
ltll~sicthat, while decades of life still remaincd t o him, his ; ~ l , i l i tI ~
t ~ ~ c n t i vcompose
el~
did not. His wife was later t o rec;ill tllc pain allcl
~ r : ~ g e dof
y those months and years during which Ivrs li;~tl~ricclI O
se, only to discover that the fount had dried up. H e livttl out
ny remaining years as an invalid in almost complctc iso1:ttion
ther musicians.
rucuertheless, their parachutes well buried, others among thc
t ommando team were ready to strike elsewhere in the world. . . .
'I'o what extent are we justified in speaking of a 'wave
I~llcnomcnon'in the way in which the radical musicians burst upon
1I1cscene? It might be said that it was difficult for a young musician
I I O ~ to be radical in that period - it was in the nature of the times,
W;IS it not? And yet, let us attempt to adopt an Oriental manner of
vicwing events: what, ultimately, was the cause behind the
~.;tdicalismand cultural revolution of the ncw century? MJere the
'new m~~sicians'
a sign of the times . . . or have the limes, or at least
to~tilrudegree

of the nature of lifi irr the twentieth century, been a sign of the
'new music'?

,or~iin~q
athe

I%utback to the cultural commandos who fell upon European

'
During the time of Ivcs, half a dozen composers in Paris sct
ton their own particular revolutionary mission. Known as thc
tvir aim was delibcr;ltcly to write music which was dcvoid of
llllY
>,irring or lofty feelings. In order to help accomplish this, j;lzz
Iicr popular idioms were borrowed by them, and the resulting
was 'successfully' noisy and cheap. Serious composers first
I,(.( ;lnlc widely aware of jazz during the 1920s. and fcw o f tllr
I,lc,l,orlc.nts of the 'new music' failed to incorporntc i t i n t o rlicir
w c ~ l l i I O some extent. Stravinsky, Ravel, Hindcrnith, (:opl;~~~tl
;incl
'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

many others - composers good and bad - all allowed jazz-like

effects into their work. By this time, spiritual standards were either
non-existent or had been turned upside down. Regrettably few
musicians of the 1920s seemed to realize the difference between
mysticism and moodiness; or if they did, they preferred the latter.
And still this was only the beginning. . . .

IGOR STRAVINSKY
In the early stages of the 'new music', one work above all others
marked the arrival, not to mention the sheer, irrepressible force, of
the revolution. Today, music students listen to this revolutionary
work in what is usually passive humility. They arc iicademically
trained to analyse the structure, rhythm and harmonics of a piece of
music rather than its overall effect and impact. No thought at all is
given to such considerations as the work's lcvcl 01' sl>irituality, of
course. Yet there are still many pcoplc out in thc world who, having
found it natural to love eighteenth and ninctrrnrl~
music,
. .. c,c~~tury
Ic have ra rely,
have scarcely heard the works of thr 'new m \
rxsion I have
if ever, heard this particular composition, :II
played a recording of it for thcni. lnv;il~i.~l)l~
r 111 upon t:hem
.J
has been one of powerful dist:urb:tncc. ;illcl ~ I I I I C K , vv I I I' lI C aarnitting
its intellectual genius and originality, I llcy 11cvc.1I 11c.lrssfound it to
sharply lower their state of conscioi~sncss,;ln[l I I O I ;I single one
professed the desire ever to hear the work ag;tin.
In the reactio~
I of thes e divine innocents, wllo 11;1t1 somehow
in the
shielded themselv-cs from the presence of the 'nr-W ni~~sic'
world about then,, -..w r 111ust be c,oming very claw I I I the initial
impact- of the work upon its first audiences. T/J?Kitrv o f Spring is
without doubt the most famous work of Igor Strit~insky.Stravinsky
(1882-1971) based the work upon the concc.pt 01' a pagan
ceremony. Certainly the music of The Rite of Sprit% is norhing if not
pagan, being wild, aggressive, and fierceIy unp)tlly. The melodies
seem designed to frighten; the harmonies to disrllI>t rhr mind. But
more than anything it was the complex rhythmic 5itlc of the work
which was so unique. The rhythms race cornprllingly, driving
relentlessly onward, breathlessly, and with dark undertones of
violence and dread.
For the premihe performance of the ballet in I 9 1 3, Nijinsky
directed the choreography, and none other than Nicholas Roerich,
in a rare misjudgment, agreed to create the dkor. 'The choreography followed the only general pattern possible, given the music
upon which it was based: a primitive ritual of pre-Christian peasant

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

97

Russia which culminates in the sacrifice of a virgin. Even by itself,

the music alone of The Rite of Spring reaches such a crescendo of
hedonistic abandonment as to suggest the sacrificial virgin,
intoxicated by the pagan ritual and violent rhythms, literally
dancing herself frenziedly to death.
W e are familiar by now in this book with the very real powers
which music seems able t o wield; also one would have had t o have
lived as a hermit for many years not to have heard of the acts of
violence and riots which sometimcs takr place at rock concerts. It
should little surprise us then that: thc prcnnii.rc of The Rite of Spring,
... 01
..L.l
over forty years before thc coming
r O C K , ;ind yrt strangely akin to
this music of later decades in the irrcprcsaihlc violence of its
rhythms, likewise resulted in a riot. Accounts writtcn at the time
record that the audience sat and listencd in silcncc. . . . for two
minutes. Then there came catcalls and shouts o l outragc. People
seated next t o each other began to fight with fists ancl cancs. Ncxt,
the attention of the audience became directed towarcis thc orchestra,
towards which everything conceivable that was 10osc and- r~cmotcly
aerodynamic was thrown. But resolutely, the mu!sicians pl ;~ycdon
through a hail of abuse and a torrent of missiles. 7The concl ~lsionof
. .R I
the ballet was greeted by the arrival of the gendarmes.
m.cantinle,
the composer at the cause of it all had escaped through a window
backstage. Such scenes had never been heard of at a ballet before,
and the incident caused a great scandal.
But Stravinsky, at 30, had only as yet begun to get warmed up,
and certainly was in no mood for apologies. 'I heard, and I wrote
what I heard,' hc said. 'I was the vessel through which Le Sacre du
Printemps passed.'
Stravinsky had written The Rite of Spring while still only 29. It
marked only the beginning of his world-renown, and only the end
of the beginning of his output, l-lc went on to compose for a total of
over six decades, and had become the acknowledged grandmaster of
the 'new music' long before his death in 197 1 . Hardly a singlc style
or movement of the 'new music' went untouched by him. As thc
general in the field, he bustlcd through the ranks, showing his f;tcr i l l
this division and that, encnuritging here, advising there, addin!; 1.011fidencc by the fact of his presence. Along the way. S~r;tvi~i.;kv
became one of the first composers of serious music I O i r ~ III~IC.
r
elements of jazz in his work. This tendency hc c:ipprtl will1 1111.
Ebony Concerto, composed especially for the 'big I ~ : a r ~ c lj.177
'
1r1
.I
yc.r S11111 I y l( l , * r I
of clarinettist Woody Herman and trumptt
Ftrr decades, cven as he devclnprd hi3 ; I I . I .I r 1 1 l !:.l1 r ~ c . , l ~ r * l l l I,
11r.e.11

THE 'NEW bl l l S I ( :'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

*cognition, Stravinsky remained next t o penniless. But this did not

prevent him from becoming closely acquainted with a11nost all t he
major names in the European arts. Picasso, a similarly cc3mmandi"g
and avant-garde figure, drew Stravinsky scvcr;il timm . Duri "g
I
W o r l d W a r I, while attempting t o cross the Italian border,
ac.~ r a v i n sky was stopped b y the guards who accused him, as he later wrote,
'of trying t o smuggle a $an of fortifications - in fiict my portrait by
Picasso - out of the country'.
Neither did his long-standing poverty dctcr him from maintaining a whisky intake of the kind that woulcl l)c cxl>cctcdt o kill most
men. H e oncc preceded the conducting o f ;I (.oncc1,1in Moscow by
downing ten drops of opium and twc
.S 01 whisky. (Given
the youthful age at which he gaincc
,I y , l ~ i sdegenerative
k y not
lifestyle, and the radical nature of- 111s I I I I I \ I ( . , S ~ ~ . , ~ v i n swas
very dissimilar, within the context 01' I1i5 O W I I (.I.;I, to, say, the
;
MOSCOW
Rolling Stones and other rock st;irs 01 I O ( I . I ~ . ) I ) I I I . ~ I I ~ this
concert he then suddenly felt sick. l ; i ~ ~ t l i ~ ~ ! : I ~ ~ ~ I \ w(';tk,
(.
a doctor
I)!! l ( 1 1 1 Illis oi~traged the
forbade him t o c
c I 1111
composer, w h o we^
I , 1 1 1 r+r ilrdulging in his
o w n 'remedy' of bra
O n c of Stravinsky 1 1 1 o w l . ( l l l o t l . l L V I I I I : ~ ~ IOI. 111~.stage is the
KCY ( I 02 7 ) . 1 1 1 I
W Cu k , I~owcvcr,the
opera-oratorio, Oedi/~zl~
institution and estal)lisl~c(lc.onccp~io11 I )l' I l ~ r . I I ~ I ( . I, I i5 completely
c
worli ljy Sopl~ocles,the
ridiculed. Though b;~scd111)or1 ~ h c~l;~?;sic:tl
libretto is sung in Latin - which n o doubt I I I O \ I 01 I I I ( . audience
cannot follow - whilc a commentator in evenin!; ilrt.sc; \1;111dst o one
side of the stage and interprets the action in n ~ i ~ ~ l j:~~.gon
r . ~ - r ~t o the
audience, which has the effect of utterly alien;~rin!: I 11i.5i11gersfrom
the onlookers.
centuries?
W a s the 'new music' so different to that of ~~l.r.vio~ls
Stravinsky's treatment of Oedipzrs Rex furnishes 11s M J ~11I I lie answer.
T h e narrow-minded critic will argue herc thar III(.11c.wmusicians
did not break with the past, but merely followr~l1 1 1 ~ .course of thc
natural evolution of the art, following the i n n o v : ~ir 111.;
~ 01' Beethoven,
Liszt, Wagner and others. T o which. in reply. it nlllsl h r emphasised
that the prime distinction between twentieth-cc.nt1lry music and that
of classicism and romanticism was never the ohvioils technical one.
but the difference between the spiritual level OF [llr two. I t is a
question of motive, of the goal of the music; it i 4 ;I fundamental
question of morality. W e must ask ourselves of any picce of music:
Does this build up or does it tear d o w n ? Ultimately, it is a question
of the ~onsciousnessof the composer.
'-

'

1 1 1 6 ~

99

I t is necessary t o b e sufficiently tlr~.rtl~c.tl

; I S 1 0 I,c impc.rvious
to intimidation b y the materi;
usical
wliich
intellectuals. These, proud t o belon
ron ;ill
'the average person doesn't underst
who could dare t o be so 'old-fashionc.c~ 1 ) I . I > O I - I I I , ~ ,iLlI ( I ~ I I I ( . \ I 1011, ; ~ r
this late date, the validity of The Rite I , / . S / r , i r ~'.l ' l ~ c ...II.III
~ i . l , ~ i l l lt o
our face: The Rite of Spying and Bec.1l 1 1 ~ v c . 1 1 ' 5N in1 11 S s ~ ~ ~ ;l~ ~r c l ~ ~ ) ~ ~ s
each equally valid within the contcxl I 11 I l~c.il I C - . ~ K . . I ii", . I / : ( ' \ , '7'0
which the disccrning shall reply: True 1 1 1s rl1.11 ( . , i e 11 , I I ( , I I I I I ' , cI' ~~c,. 1 1
consisting physically of air vibrations , 1 1 1 ~ 1~ ~ 1 1 11 I(.III/:
1
~ ) ( . I - I o I 111e.(l 1))'
similar musical instruments ; but thesc work\ , [ I I 111. I I-,IIII I ) I I W O
diametrically opposed philosophies - ;tr l ~ c . i \ li c I I I I I I I , I I ) ~ ~ I I I ,111~1
spiritual idealism - which have warrrd 5inc.c. l)c.101.(.I I I ( . ~ I , I W I I 01history for the possession of the minds o f ti7c.n.
; I I I ( ~ ~11c
If we should doubt whether or not Thr Kitc o/'.il~t.h~,~:
.
other early works of 'new music' are really so 1>;1~1,ts ,111 I h ; ~ r 1l1un
. ~ 10.
we have only to glance further on in time t o see w l ~ t rt l ~ c I(.(!
W h a t manner of art did the 'new music' g o on t o bccomc l'ollowi~~g
these first beginnings? After all, the real nature of the secd bcco~nzs
inevitably outpictured in the flower! T h e seed itself may givc littlc or
no indication as t o that which lies within it. and the non-hot:cni5r
might easily put thc namc 'rose tree' t o the seed of a Vcnus fly-tr;tp.
h becomes revcaled.
But in the proccss o f its & ~ o w t all
Is therc a diffic~llly in disccrning the subtle naturc of a music.
whether it is beneficial or cl(,structivc in effect? Then the answcr t o
the dilcn~mawas put into I N I . I~andstwo millennia ago:
- Ye shall know tbrr)/ /bc>ir./i.rrirs. . .

BALLET MECHANIQU E, ANT) AFTER

The date: l 0 April, 1927. 'I'll(* l)l,~cc:
Carnegie Hall, N e w York. A
quarter of the way into tl.
' now. And an American audiencr
of the wonderful new music. The
prepared themselves for ;I
composer, George Anthr
oduced a work befitting the ncw
century of progress. R u l ~ c t ~ ~steadily
lg
upon each other's work,
composer after composes h ; ~ c l])ushed the grandeur and sublimity of
Western music ever highcr. 1. S. Bach, Handel, H a y d n , Mozart,
Beethoven, Wager - ancl now George Antheil, with the f'irht p(.1-101,mance of Ballel Mhchirlvrqz[e, his newly wrought c r c ; ~ion.
~ /\1.1(1
'wrought' it had indeed IIxen : 'm1lsical engineering', Anth<.il c ; i I 1 ~ ~ 1
L _ __
it. T h e instrumentation f o .r. -ulc
wurk included various oJJ.i ;IIILI (.IILI'~
l
and items of hardware - anvils, bells, horns, hu;.~5,iws , ~ r ~ t,111
airplane propeller. O h , and also some pianos. (Tcn, t o 1 . ) ~lr~,rc.isc*.)

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

One can imagine that for such a grand occasion as the premiirc at
the Carnegie Hall only the world's leading virtuoso buzzsawists will
have been employed, and perhaps one of the Wright brothers on
propeller for the uplifting finale. (For a much later 1 9 5 4 performance, the composer feared that Ballet Me'thanzqzre might b y then
sound - well, old fashioned - and replaced thc airplane propeller
with a recording of a jet engine. After all, thc 'new music' must
move on !)
Edgar VarPse (1 88 5-1 9 6 5), another American, dcdicated his life
to seeing that thc 'new music' did indeed 'movc on', and became one
of the leaders in the field. Born a French-It;ili;in in Paris, V a r k e
emigrated to America in 1 9 15. H e saw aro~lndhinrsclf a concentrated lifc of hustle and bustle, and a world wl~ic.l~,
somc said, had
entered into a machine agc. Both the spcc.d ,IIII.! r l ~ cmachinery of
twentieth-century city life were to bc ;tn inlpc)n.~r~[
influence upon
his music. Said Varhse:
Speed and synthesis are c1iar;tcr cris~i t 1 ,I I ,111 (.I)( ~ . h W
. e need
11.. I ' ( - , I ~ ~ Y (~
' I ~ o in
s emusic. 2 '
twentieth-century instrurnrntu 1 1 ) 111.1~,
etc.,
And had the people of the d ; ~ y1.tk1.11I I I I I I 10 I I I ( ' . I I I I)IIT:I.S~W~
the sounds
they would not have been far wrong. I I I:; wol.k r.c-I~oc~tl
rl
511c 11 sc,unds are
of city life. Motors, pistons, c;tr horns ; t ~ ~ or11r.r
distinctly evoked in the rnr~sic. Mclocty ;incl II;II.IIIOII~ wrre at a
I I I insis.
minimum; all the emphasis Varcsc placed upon ~ I I ~ I ~ ~ tIis
l
a n d the
tent rhythms reflected the throbbing, whirrins i l l c l l ~ \ ~ l . i ; llik
hectic bedlam of rush-hour.
. . .. ,
Yes - again W C: find 0111-selves m,zeting our o i c 1 I'1.i~.
sm .
Of course, the 'net Y music' iS somethin g which t l l c - I i k o
ld I
'just d o not under:itand . BI~t ncvertlleless, perh;~p%
wt.
non
sufficient courage t o tentatively enquire: Wh)!S I I C11 ~rtusic?W h y
reflect city life? (And h o w objective was Vari-sc'u vi5i1111o f city lifc
in any caie?) Observe the difference here again I,r,rwc-c.~,
twentiethcentury 'serious music' and that of earlier times. I:orlnerly music
raised and sublimated; now it 'reflects'. W h a t gooil ~ l o c ssuch music
d o for anyone? (But here our questions arc cl~.owned out by
orchestrated peals of sarcastic laughter. 'Good?W l ~ yshould music
have to do good?')
After the early 1 9 3 0 s VarPse virtually ceased composing, and
took up research into electronic instruments. Mc:~nwhile,the tape
recorder had been invented in 1 9 3 5, though it only Ixcame widely
wailable after about 1950. VarPse received one as a gift in 195 3,

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

101

; ~ n dimmediately began using it to cnlc'r :c11( V I I i1.c.1~I I C W ficld nf tone

production for 'artistic purposes', which W;IS j11s1opening up. N o w
i t was possible t o pre-record exactly rllc so1111il5
one r ~ n c ~ ~ ~ itroc d ,
txoduce tones artifically, to mix them, slow 11lct11c l o w ~ speed
~.
them
up, or play them backwards.
Needless to say, the 'new musici;tns' wcbrcgoin): I O I I , I V ~ . ;I iiclri
day.
And so, following a gap of t w o dccarics, V;~r;.scI,t/:;tn c,omposing once more. His tape-recorded work, Dt':rurt.r, w;ts c o ~ ~ ~ ~ ) l (i l.l t r c l
1 9 5 4 and premiPred on 2 December in Paris. Dcirrf.r c o ~ l s i s ~ cOSd
sections of recorded industrial noises (more I~ishill~:,! : I . ~ I I ~ ~ ~ I I ! ; ;IIICI
- Vari.se had apparently not advatlcctl so 1;tr clilri~i!; t110sc
twenty years!) alternated with instrumental pcrn~suio~r~);~ss,~gt.s.
Y.
The effect was t o suggest both a musicality prcscllr i l l ~ I I ( ~ I I ~ I I .;IIICI
also a mechanization of human musicians. Broadcast in s ~ t r c or;iJio,
the piece gained instant fame. Like The Rite ofSprit18 I'ot~rtlcc..~cl(ss
earlier, Deierts had broken new and starkly rcvolution;iry gro~~rrcl,
and resulted in a wave of music which followed in its wskc. iVil11i11
but a year or two, the production line for electronic music was in top
gear.
Deserts had originally been intended t o be accompanied by ;I film
'purely of light
As we might by n o w expect, howcvcr,
VarPse stipulated that 'the film must be absolutely in opposition
with the score'. (Opposite visual and auditory perceptions, it seems
reasonable t o assumc, could exert a disastrously mind-splitting
efiect, resulting in possil,le: psychosis. Could it have been that at
such results ?)
some level of his being, Vitrtsc 'fe~ired
O f Dherts and the later work, Poime Electronzgue, Francis Routh
has pointed out that V;~ri.sc'~locsnot seek to assert the human will
so much as to submit it t o the, ~inlclessvoid that is nature. W e move
through a wasteland of sound ...'2Z Routh further indicates thc
similarity between such music ; ~ n dthe literature of existentialism, as
championed by Jean-Paul S;II.II.C.
(Existentialism was particularly
prominent in Varhse's land o f ITirth, France, and especially from rllch
late 1 9 4 0 s onwards.) Pcrh;~psherc w e find as clear a pointer ;[S a n y
t o the philosophy underlying the 'new music': existcntialism. of
course, is the general dr)ctrine which denies objective univcrs;~l
values or morals. A man. so it is claimed, must create v;tlt~c*\1111himself through his own actions. H e has absolute liberty t o c10 .I.. 111.
chooscs; thus allowing for anarchy. In fact, Polrt~r l i / r . ~ / ~ o t t l r / / i c .
(1957-8) was described by Vari.se as 'a protest ;ig;tinsl ~ I I ~ ~ I I I . , I I I ~ ~ I I
[i.e. the maintenance o f standards - D.T.] in cvc.rv 11,1111'
.I
strikingly anarchistic statement.

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I02

Poinze Electro~zique,though only eight minutes long, came t o be

recognized as 'a masterpiece of tape music'. Amid a strange,
fearsome background of harsh, artificial sounds, a solo soprano
voice enters towards the end, sounding as though invoking some
i~nimaginableform of evil. T h e composition of the work was
suggested in the first place by Le Corbusier, so that it could bc
played in the Phillips Radio Corporation pavilion which he had
designed for the Brussels Exhibition. T h r tones wcre projected b y
four hundred loudspeakers placed at every position conceivable
within the building, which itself resembled 'a circus tent with three
polcs somewhat inaccurately p i t c h ~ d ' . ~ '
Dijerts and Poime Electronique were the only major works t o be
composed by Varcsc. aftcr the 1 9 3 0 s , and yet, judging by the aftermath, they co~lldnot have been better calculated to stir up a new
movemen; of tlie revolution. Withiin month s of the premiere of
Diierls, there followed the first live concert in the w o rld at wtlich
every sound was electronically syn thcsizcd. Four ye,ars later., in
19) 8, thcrc appeared Berio's T / ~ ~ ? / l r om?)zagio
l
a Joyce, which
seemed t o be an attempt t o portray, in electronic tone and
electronically-manipulated spcc.ch, ;l progressive mental disintcgratlon.
Another 'first' c;tmc for tllc clcctronic musicians in 1 9 6 7 - the
first commission of a picc.c o f electronic music by a record company
where thc music wits n o r initially intended for broadcast p r f o r mance.2"I\/lor~on Sul)otnik was the lucky n u n , the crentor of such
previous artistic ~n;lstcrpiecesas The W i l d Bull and Sidewirzder.
1 1 1 ~ 1;In ~K ~ l c l ~.iYnthcsizer,
l;~
he now unvriled for the world Sii'uer /Ipple.\ c~/'/llt#
Moo~.
H o w t o dcscrihc this 'music' of Subotnik? A t first it sounds
merely monotc.)nous. Yet somehow the title is eerily apt: it is as
though silver bi~llsare raining from space and exploding o n the
ground and in lhc ;lir all around one, doing so with 'bleeping'
noises. And s o il gocs on. Then, for :I mclnient one comes t o feel that
thcrc might aftcr ;III I)c genuine aesthetic interest in these bleeps . . .
if only one listcns, t l ~ l t tis; li:itening more closcly ... more attcntivcly
.. . t o the sounds, t he*xilvcr: iounds . .. thc busting apples .. .
... .cllow
..l1..... .me here t o offcr on< opinion? Nv proof,
I i o u l d the rcadc-l
no scientific discussion ahout the pros and cons of the conviction I
find niysclf with - just a siniplc gut reaction: that there is something
distinctly dangerous t o thc consciousness in such music as this.
Dangerous in a perhaps surprisingly tangible and immediate way. It
is as though therc exists a chasm within each of these electronic comh

ut'

'- '

103

1)ositions: a dark, yawning crevasse wllich, if wit allow it to, will

~lacllyswallow up whatever portion of oilr mind W C offer it by the
tlirccting of our attention towards it.
While Subotnik's work was emerging, anothcr ncbw Jcvclopment
wits also under way, coming to fruition in 1908. O I I C Waltcr
(hrlos, taking up the music of J. S. Bach, prorluccd wll;it (.ould be
~ . ; ~ l l ea dstyle of 'neo-classicism'. Afraid th;11 tllrrc 111i);llt yet 1)e life
i l l the old boy and his work, Carlos took K;lr.l~I ) y r l ~ c11cc.k ;und
.~rtcmpted(if he could) to utterly throttle ; I I - I L ~ clc.srroy h i n ~ .K:1cl1
pvfirmed by gnthesizer was the appalling outcome. (More. sctisrnic,
shocks from China.) Needless t o say, the syntllcsi7,c~rprovc.tl 1 1 t t c r 1 ~
incapable of capturing the most meagre cssc.ncc o f 111c I1I;LIIy S II;IC~CS
o f warmth, power, awe and reverence, scrc:riity and d(.lic;ctc*1-)c;luty
which Bach's works demand of their usual i nstruIiic11ts. ' l ' l ~ i x \V;IS of
little, if any, concern t o Carlos or the record comp;lny pi.otl~~cing
rlrc
;urocity, however. Their thoughts were n o doubt clscwhc.rc: llic I ,IJ
lxxording swiftly became by far the most popular (and Itlc.r;~tivc)
cblectronic recording of all time. Sporting the title Slodt~beJO N ULI(%>
on the cover, along with a number of repetitions of Bach's f,~cc
illustrated in psychedelic style, it became the kind of record which is
1113for sale by the dozen on Woolworth's swing-racks, and which is
]>ipedthrough as 'easy listening' into dentists' waiting rooms.
W h a t is more, it must be remembered that this was 1968: the
. , .
'new m u s ~ c ,jazz, and rock music had by now, between them,
reigned supreme for decades. Tragic to relate it may be, but nonerl~clessabsolutely true, that for thousands of households into which
[his atrocity gained admittance, for untold adults and for their
(.h ildrer1, Switched on Bach rcprcscn t cd their retyfinrt, fi not their only
ctlfcounte,v with this giant of thc histcltry of gre,at music.
But it was not t o be their I;lst. Pdot sluggish t o cash in o n a good
~lling,Carlos followed up within a year with The Well-Tempered
\ y~/hesixev.

ISy this time a certain cross-fertilization was becoming apparent

I)cl wchcnthe 'new music' ant1 thr general jazz and rock style. I t camc
1 0 I)c xccn that thc technic;~ldil'l'c.rcnces between 'scrious' music, j ; i n ,
1 . o C . k . or any other form n l ~ ~ ~ o d music
c r n were lcss important tl1;111
I I I L * u ~ ~ i f y i nfactor
g
that tlicir philosophical basis was morc or Icss
I the same: hedonis111and anarchy. I n an era during w l ~ i c , l ~
;ic.ian was constantly searching for 'new sounds' wit11 wllic-h
I O rli\rinxuish himsclf from the pack, the brcakciown o f thc clivi\io~~\
c.r.p;lr;~tingthe different musical forms offcrcd tempting ~~ox\il~iIi~ir.s.
] , 1 7 7 look 011 rock elements, and rock took to itxc,lf I I I : I I 01
I~111~

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

04

tchniques of jazz. Rock, which had arisen from the most primitive
of beginnings. spawned groups such as Soft Machine and Velvet
Underground, which were s~~fficiently
avant-garde that no book
about the 'new music' was complete without mentioning them.
Meanwhile, one noticrd with amusement that a certain atmosphere
of 'the rock star' had attached itself t o a number of the 'new
musicians' in the magic of adulation which became associated with
their names.
From the lofticst viewpoint, the different forms of modern music
began to look likc the various branches of what was, at its root, one
revolution. The slcevc notcs of Tcrry Rilcy's A Rainbow in Curved
A i r , for instance, could have been taken directly from a sixties' rock
album slecve, in their naive, anti-patriotic, left-wing vision of an
LSD-tinted future:
And then all wars cndcd . . . The Pcntagr~nw2s turned on its sidc
and paintcd purple, yellow ;tnd Srccn ... People swam in the
sparkling rivcrs under blue k i c s streaked only with incense
pouring from the new f;~c.torics . . . National flags were sewn
together into brightly colourcd circus tents under which
politicians wcrc allowcci I o pcrfr)rm harmless thcatric;~lgames . ..
The concept of work wit, forgotten [despite the 'new factories',
where some pcol?lc workcd - while olherr outside swam! - D . T . ]
. . . The cncrgy from dixmantled nuclcar weapons provided frce
heat and light."

MUSIC BECCIM ES CAGED

O n c of thc rnost influential contemporary figures in tcrms of his
effcct upon t l ~ cc,ou;sc of the 'new music' is John Ciigc (b. 1 9 12). It
will be wor-thwhilc to describe a number of Cage's most important
. very cutting cdge of whert the ' new mus ic'
works, sincc Ii(. is a1 the
is attempting 1 0 t;d;c us tod ay. By virtue of the sounci,S which hc
produces. by virtue o f the le ngth o f his career ;incl his promincn cc
within the field, Ily virtue of the number of new s ~ ~ b - ~ r ~ u v c ~ ~ ~ c n t s
within the tonal drts which he has initiated o r hrlpcd t o initiate, and
by virtue of the f;~ct11iat he has gonc t o the lengtlls of specifically
stating the
foundation5 underlying hi\ own work, it is
perhaps John Cage ;tbovc all others who, nrnong thc 'new
. .
musicians , deserves t o bc rcgarded as the arch-cncmy of spiritual
3

idealism.
Cage's initial claim t o fame was the to-some-dubious honour
of completing thc first known electronic composition. In Imaginavy

101

I.trndscape N o . 1 ( 1 939), Cage played t w o gramophonca rc.c,ords of

111csine continuum which is used by telephone cnginccrs t o Irst tcleI)honelines, at the same time including the sound of ;I t;llll-l;lrn. thc
~.csult of it all being recorded onto anothcr record. (:;igc* :~lso
tlcigned t o include a more conservative instrument, tllc. ~)i;clloplayed b y one hand while the other hand was uscd t o (I.IIIII) llir
strings . .
Again Cage bowed t o such 'classical influences' for tl~c. 1 0 4 2
c,omposition, Credo In Us. But this time not merely a ~ ) ~ . I I I I ) ,I ) I I ~
classical music itself was inserted directly into the work: Crr*rlr~In ( 1 ,
made use of a record player which Cage, as 'composer', s r ~ ~ g c . s ~ c . ~ l
should be playing a classical work such as that of B ( . I . I ~ I O V ( ' I I .
Sibelius, D v o r i k or Shostakovich. But unfortunately thc t I,rhsic ;il
recording had t o share the sound-vibrations of Credo In Us wit 11 hi.
playing of a radio and recordings of gamelan music and j a y , J ( . ( O I .
ding to the laid-down instructions of the 'composer'. F u r t l ~ c ' l . ~ ~ ~ o ~ . ( . ,
the 'performer', sitting at the classic-playing gramophor~c, w ~ . ;
obliged t o regularly raise and lower the needle. Thus, t11c. c-1;lssic
became subjected, in the words of Paul Griffiths, 'to piecenlc;~l1)r.csentation in a quite alien context'.24 W e must decide for oursclvcs 1.0
what extent the elements of Credo In Us were all chosen for purcly
'artistic' purposes, and t o what extent the ridiculing of the classical
composers, some of whom were still alive and composing, might
have been a form of dictatorial attack. (Peter Yatcs, w h o kncw
Cage during these early years, describes him as having bcen
stubborn and argumentative.2')
I t was also in the 1 9 4 0 s that Cage brought out his 'prepared
piano' pieces. T o understand the concept behind these works, it is
necessary to realize that thor1~11pianos had previously been a n sidered adequate enough as rllcy wcrc, the 'new music', based as it is
of course upon the ideal of con1 i11ual progress, needed t o furnish the
instrument with certain i r n p r o v c . ~ ~ ~ cTherefore
~its.
Cage took it upon
Iiirnself t o d o so, 'preparing' rhc ~ i a n oby placing various objects
within it, resting loosely L I ~ O I I the strings - scraps and bits of wood,
odd nuts and bolts, weathcr >tripping, etc. - thus introducing wh.11
Larorrsse politely calls 'unusual timbres',19 and Virgil Thomson ':L
ping cpalified by a thud'.
Anuilier Cage mastcrpiecc, which no doubt took cnnsidcr;ll)lc,
( r ~ r ! iI
pains t o compose, was r:ithcr less discordant. 4 rninil!~.~
.second.s consists of performers w h o arrive on stage, lily u p I I I ( * ~ I .
instruments, poise themselves t o play ... and rcmnir~I I I J I W , I ~1;)s
yc:s, 4 minutes and 33 seconds.

106

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Are we being unkind in ridiculing 4 minutes and 3 3 seconds? I

believe not. It is true that all sorts of lofty mystical concepts can be
associated with silence; this work, it could be argued, brings silence
to our attention. Yet one feels that this is grossly to underestimate
the majority of the audience. Those who cannot normally sit still
and appreciate silence will not genuinely d o so during this 'composition' either, whereas those who are meditatively inclined do not
need John Cage to make them so - they enjoy meditation and the
stillness of silence frequently. 4 minutes and ?J seconds might
therefore be viewed as nothing but a joke; cheap, unnecessary and,
perhaps also, egocentric.
Imaginary Landscape No. 4 appeared in 195 1 . This piece, in one
respect, was in the best tradition of the ancient wisdom, involving as
it did the mystical numbers of 12 and 24. The work required 1 2
radios as the instruments and 24 performers (onc performer for each
volume dial and one for each frequency dial). ?'hc prcmiPre performance was delayed for quite a while, ilntil 1;itc cvcning in fact, with
the result that when it finally did takr pl:tcr. m;lny radio programmes had changed and some stations 11;itl golri' 01'1' the air entirely.
Some critics scoffed that the pcrforrn;tncr Ii;ld t llrrcfore flopped, but
Cage himself, turning defeat into vicrtory ;IS i~ wc.~.c.,brought forth
his new doctrine of music. 'I'he wholc point, i~ sc-cn~cd,was that
Cage's work had involved chancc lactors, ii'ro~.\ out of the composer's control, and so the late performancc 11;1rl, i r ~Ii~ct,succeeded
in demonstrating these all the more successfi~lly!A ~ i ~ the
i n critics
attacked: they pointed out that the performance 1 1 , l c l not involved
pure. random chance, but only relative chancc, si~~c-c
t11(- composer
had still laid down a number of stipulatic)r~s.(:,ISC therefore
renamed the new doctrine ' I n d e t e r r n i n a ~ ' . ~ ~
Indeterminacy was a radical concept for rn~~sic,.
'l'llc composer,
according to the work he envisaged and the c o r ~ s ~ ~ .11c
; ~either
i ~ l ~ sdid
or did not impose, could allow for anything from ,r slight degree of
indeterminacy to a very large, almost total, degree t 11' ind~terminac~.
(Such music is also sometimes called aleatory music:. f'rom the Latin
term for dice, alea. And yes - Cage d i d use dic-c to decide the
sounds for some compositions.)
A good example of indeterminate music in action was the work,
Concert, of 19J7-8, In this piece, each player was simply instructed
to play any, all or none of his notes. The result could have been
anywhere between total noise to total silence, with a more likely
area of partial noise in-between. Whether the rcsult could ever have
been music, however, is another matter entirely. (But then, of course,

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

~liosewho question the validity of such sounds 'do not understand';

tlrcir 'conception of music is too narrow'.) It might be felt that such
,111ticscould have little or no bearing on the stream of serious music
as a whole. Yet nothing could be further from the truth: Cage has
cxcrted a great influence, over the years, upon other musicians.
Indeterminacy in music, for example, has actually become quite
widely practised since Cage first began twiddling his radio dials and
tlirowing his dice.
In time, Cage's own use of indeterminacy also grew more
sophisticated. H e left off his dice-throwing as a determinator of the
tones, and took up I Ching. Then later, as the computer field
developed, Cage made use of computers also, thus having
progressed from gambling with dice, through psychism with I
Ching, and arriving at the mechanization concept of life. One might
imagine that the idea of music as being sounds produced without the
intrusion of human will is as near as the art can be taken t o the edge
of the crevasse of cynical nihilism. However, Cage's Concert for
Piano and Orchestra and Atlas Eclipticalis may be said to succeed,
through another method, in pushing music completely over the edge.
'To borrow Peter Yates' description of the works, these 'may be
called an antimusic, as a scientist speaks of antimatter. The many
motifs do not harmonicaUy draw together but are mutually rejecting

. . .'23
Personally, I am attempting to explain to myself here what
manner of mind it can be that feels moved to actively pursue the
creation of a literal antimusic. Once more, we must not avoid the
necessary enquiries: What is the inner motive? W h a t u the consciousness which has brought forth these works? In what direction is

such a music like4 to take czt~ilrlption,should it be true that life patterns

are influenced by musicpattems?
Cage himself has offered a number of insights into his mental
processes and his personal attitude to music. In 195 2, in a lecture ;it
LIIC Juihard School of Music, he explained to the breathless, openruouthcd students (the blank4 indicating his musical interludes):
and t11:tr i\
and I am saying it
I h ; ~ v enothing to say
contemporary music is changing.
poetry as I need it
we could sinlrly tlcc itlr
But since everything's changing
To have somrthi~r~: Ilc .I
to drink a glass of water
have to have enough timr t o r , ~ l k wl1r11
nla.;rcrpiece you
you have nothing to say.26

108

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

So then they knew.

Also, one other statement by Cage deserves mention. While
nevertheless composing more and more works, he has
simultaneously insisted that he is 'less and less interested in music'.
Not exactly encouraging to the audience !
Cage's style of poetry, it will be observed from the above, is very
reminiscent of Kerouac, Ginsberg and the 'TOs' beat generation.
And the parallels also go further: Cage lived in the same state,
California, at the same time, the 19JOs, as did the early movement
of ~ot-smoking, 'spontaneous prose'-writing drop-outs. Cage
likewise professed an interest in Zen Buddhism. and Cage's concept
of Zen was likewide a perversion of the genuine article.
In fact, Zen actually became the mainstay of Cage's defence of
his doctrines. Genuine Zen may be defined as a mystical path to selfrealization based upon methods designed to stretch the limits and
break the over-automated hnbitu~llpattcrns of the mind. Certainly
its goal and its effect are positive and constructive; with insight, Zen
can be seen to be entirclp in cnnfornlity with the great world religions and mystical paths. Thc 'Zcn' of Cage and of the selfprofessed 'monks' of br:it CL~lifornia,however, is altogether less
well-defined, and takes 11ic form of an excuse for artistic and
behavioural anarchy. Cage uscs Zen as a philosophical basis for his
techniques of indctcrn~inac~;
and yet, as Christopher Small has
pointed out. true Zen docs not teach a doctrine of luck or chance,
but one of a diffcrcll~kind of order: a spontaneous order, but not rand~mness.~'
Francis Rot~rli,wlio is actuallp considerably involved himself in
the 'new music', ncvertheless dismisses Cage's philosophy as being
seriously in rrror. St;~tcsRouth:

Alas. not all modern musicians can boast such penetrating sanity.
1;ollowing Cage's lead, a number of others have also worked mainly
or entirely within the 'Zen'/indeterminacy framework; the majority
of them living in America, and most of these in California. Terry
Ililey, the sleeve notes to whose record we quoted earlier, is among
them. Among his creations we find the composition, I n C . For this
work any number of performers may be used. Each plays as many
times as he desires a short melodic fragment, before moving on to
the next. Fifty short melodic fragments are included in all, each
being diatonic on the scale of C. Through all the noise in which this
set-up results, some semblance of cohesion is provided by a piano;
upon this the note C is repeated rapidly and continuously.
LaMonte Young's Composition 1960 No. 7 consists of nothing
more than the instmction: 'B and F sharp. T o be held for a long
time.' As in Cage's 4'33", any pretensions at mysticism are here
overshadowed by the overwhelming and gigantically egocentric
attitude of cynicism. And any suspicions that such cynicism stems
from some form of actual, suppressed malevolence may not be illfounded. For to Young also goes the dubious distinction of having
pushed concert programmes inside a violin and then having burned
the instrument on stage.
Another 'new musician', David Tudor, has on more than one
occasion attacked a piano with various weapons - a chisel, a rubber
hammer, a bicycle chain and a saw - while in live performance.
Sounds familiar? During those same years sundry rock musicians
were doing the same: smashing guitars, burning drum kits and
amplifiers, biting the heads off live chickens and bats, and so on.
Clearly there is no real diffcrcncc. lxtween t h e e patterns of activity
within the two musical movcnicnts. True it is that 'serious' music
and popular music stem from ditfcrcnt origins and have tended to be
widely divergent in style, forn~;tnd purpose. But there is today a
common element moving within them : something motivated by
hatred rather than by love or :my other higher
emotion; a forcr
unmistakably destructive and m;1lignant.
Some compositions seen1 almost t o have been envisn!:r.tl
specifically as a means of ch:innclling this malevolence into thc 11il.c.c.
tion of the audience. LaMontc Young's The Tortoise, Hir Drvirr)r\
and Journeys expects the audience, no doubt composed {If'i n r ~ CcT~I II
wide-eyed, admiring college students, to sit through scvrr;~lI I O I I I ~01~
aural and psychological onslaught. Young and thrcc :IS\( , ( . ; . ~ r c-. 4 11.11 11
an open chord through vastly powerful, car-splittirll: ;inlpl~f1c.1 . l 1 1 1 1
maintain this solitary chord non-stop for alniosr two I I ~ I I I I , , ,111 I 111,.

John Cagc rrprescnts the point of no return; nothingness. zero.

W e are bidcicn t o leave the world of reality as if in a trance. The
sound has no hcginning, middle or end; disemhodiment is the
ideal; the music is not to be 'listened to' so much as 'experienced',
which is not easy l;)r a Westerner .. But, Cagc says, forget all
you have ever he;crd, all traditions, musical associations. everything; forget life.
The flaw in this is iln~nistakable;if the listrncr is to enter such
a state of nihilism, he will also forget John Cagc. Moreover, has
not King Lear already told us what can 'come of nothing'? And
in denying its past, thc Cagc aesthetic inevitably denies any
possible future.22

109

C..

110

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

within a darkened room in which the only light comes from projections of astral, psychedelic-patterned art. Then there is a break;
following which comes another like session of similar duration another two hours. It is possible in one hundred per cent seriousness
to equate such practices with the modern brainwashing techniques of
Communist and other dictatorial regimes. (Yet who is the more
imprisoned and brainwashed - he who is kept under lock and key
due to his activities on behalf of freedom, or he who, from the free
world, goes willingly into the prepared and darkened chamber of
psychological onslaught 2)
A friend and fellow composer of Young, Steve Reich, has seen fit
to study - not at any established school of music, nor even in the
Orient - but under a voodoo dmmmer in Ghana. Now, voodoo is
one of the few musics which, rather than cloaking its innate
hedonism and malevolence behind a mask of intellectualism, openly
admits to being intended as a means of inducing orgies and of
inflicting harm and even death upon other individuals. This is the
intent of the voodoo ritual. whatcvcr wc may think of its objective
ability. And, in view of our data thus far on music's power, the idea
that voodoo does possess romc ;tctu;il clrutruciive power should not,
perhaps, be lightly disn~isr~d.
A sign for the future, t h ~ t l iArc ihc ,iv:i~it-prdegoing to be
returning from Africa by the dozen '15 1r;iinc-d voodoo priests? How
long before the first voodoo rite at London's Itoyal Festival Hall?
(A ridiculous concept? Think how inconceivahlr i t would have been
to, say, Haydn, that concert audiences woulrl ever sit through
violin-burning, dice-throwing, and the biting ot'i of the heads of
chickens.) The glorious dream of the expcrinlcntalists fulfilled:
Western music improved and evolved in our tirrlc from Bach,
Beethoven and Wagner - to the jungle beat !
Meanwhile, the subtleties of Cage's own arti5tic style have continued to evolve. But, to ensure an unbiased report, Ict us hear from
Peter Yates, who himself has much sympathy wit11 ~nostof the 'new
music' :
Some of these compositions are a type of glorified play, for
example Cartridge Music. Phonograph-nerdlc cartridges are
attached to an overhead boom and the edge and centre of a table,
chosen for the resonance of its vibration when shoved back and
forth across the floor. Cage and a companion, each following a
different graphic pattern of events by chance, insert slinkies, pipe
cleaners, miniature flags, even a tiny birthday candle which is

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

111

tl~cnlighted, into the needle slots of the cartridges and agitate

~llcrn,producing noises in the loudspeakers, which accompany the
l~crl;~rmance
with low-frequency vibration sounds culled from
~.c.cordsof his music. One watches the actions of the t y o pcrfor111c.r~as in other days one watched the actions of the clowns
(~rculatingaround the three rings of the circus, and the morc onc
rcblaxes into uninhibited attention the funnier it gets. The acrion.
likr great farce, treads with dangerous steps, as if unaware \ I O W
11arrow1~
it avoids the precipitous inane.23

Arid of Cage's Variations IV, as performed by the O N C E gro111)01'

Anr~Arbor, Michigan:
On a small platform an interview was being mimed (an Arncric,;~~~
composer interviewing another American composer), whilc a r.cl)c
of the actual interview, taken from a broadcast, playcd thro~~gh
an inconspicuous loudspeaker. The interviewee blasted sevcr;tl of
his more popular contemporaries, saying many things ;tl)out
musical conditions and personalities as true as ernbarrassi~~g,
while the mimed 'feedback' turned it all into parodic comedy, tllc
audience laughing at truth and parody together. Meanwhile a girl
was being tied to a table and elevated by two men to the top of a
metal pole. Firecrackers were exploding, an automobile running
outside an open door. A man appeared, bemused and carrying a
baton, as if expecting an orchestra. A girl approached him with a
scarf, wound it around his neck. returned with an overcoat to put
it on him, returned to exchange his glasses for dark glasses, to
outfit him with a piano accordion, finally to replace his baton
with a blind man's white, rrd-tipped cane. The image of the
reduced conductor was lcti up the aisle, bleating his accordion.
An allegory of 'the end of lnusic as we have known it'!23

'T~IIISmusic becomes theatrc; not as a synthesis of the two, but as a

tlisint cgration of each.
Nrither has dance been allowed to escape the treatment. I11
witncssing the activities of .Mcrce Cunningham's dance troupr, one
rcc~llsthe original psyche-splitting plan of Edgar Vartse, t11;tt his
D6ert.v should be played in conjunction with a film of lightphcnomma, 'absolutely in opposition with the score'. 111 h/l nc-C
Cunningham's dances - yes; the reader's anticipation Imps :~lrc.:ttlo f
11s - the dance movements bear no relation wh;crcvrr I ~ IIIIC
;~ccornpanyingsound.

112

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Cage himself has in the past worked with thc Merce

Cunningham group. But the relationship, if 'relationship' it can be
said to have been, was of the following kind: cach composer or
dancer would g o off quite separately t o plan and practise his or her
own individual stage performance; then they would come together
to perform on stage.
- All of them, performing simultaneously.
When one thinks about it, such a situation - with everybody
playing or dancing his 'own thing' - must be the way music and
dance actually began. one day back in the steaming primeval forests.
But then, at some point, there arose co-operation and organization which, in retrospect, is after all considered to have been a point of
evolution.

A VISITOR FROM SIRIUS

Not for no reason did the face of ECarlheinz Stockhausen (b. 1928)
peer out at us from the front cover of the Beatlcs' Sgt Pepper album
1L' . -.
on the cover represented a
of 1967. The numerous faces and oo~cccs
synthesis of the Beatles' pet loves and hates; and Stockhausen was
included by those four lcading figurcs of one revolutionary field of
music in recognition of this lcading personage in anothcr branch of
what was, in some ways, the same basic musical revolution.
Though Stackllnusen has never been quite as radical as Cagc, thc
difference brtwecn the two is in fact one of degree, and not of type.
Stockha
sic ia still1 of the stylc which thc majority of people
would n
Icr to be music at all. Nevertheless, Stockhausen is
acknowl
itl~inthe realm of modern 'serious' music to be the
most important c.omposer since the Second World War. His work
has influcncc.~lvcry many young musicians. Given this notability
and influence, itl~owhich dircction then has hc dirccted thc tonal
arts, this 'rnobt important composer since the Sccond World W a r ' ?
At first c.otnposing within the bounds of total serialism,
Stockhausen the11 went on to introduce electronics into his music.
And next thcrc camc indeterminate music, still largely working with
electronic materials. Stockhausen has therefore become the virtual
embodiment of the ni;~jortrends of music within the last thirty
years. Not as a followcr. however, but very much as the leader.
Among his flashcs of genius is the use of electronic modulators into
which are fed the live sounds of the performers, thesc sounds then
being subject to electronic potcntiometers, filters, generators and the
like.
If all this sounds worryingly inaccessible to the layman, there
-

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

III
v,-4

113

1y y r.1 IN. cause to take heart. For as everybody knows, music with
# I,I-, is ;~lways
easier for the man in the street to ~lndcrstand;and a

01' Stockhausen's influential works d o cont;lin text. For

V . I I I ) ~ llle
) I C ,7 ,l-minute work Mometzts (1 964) includes the listed
1 1 I I I I I . ~ , 01- Stockhausen's wife. children and friends, s111;1ll portions
1 1 I I I I ICI trrs he received while creating thc wc-~rk,otld lincs from
\%'illi,rn~Ulake, clapping and shouts of 'cncorc'. (Wit11 lhcsc last
111 III\,
llowever. the composer may have bccn slightly ju~npirigthe
I I I ~ I I )II T~

r6l1ll

F,,I )n after Moments, Stockhausen unveiled M ikropborire I

I 1 ')(14),a work requiring four players, t w o of whom, wit11 thc ultra-

. , I I O I I S and self-important concentration normal to pcrforn~crsof the

. ,
' i 1 l . w rnustc , excite a large tarn-tam from opposite sidrss with a 111~11I 11 IIIII- of different objects made of everything from wood ;und p;tpcr
1 1 , I)l;~stic
and glass. The resultant sounds are picked up hy microI ~ I ~ Ah,
~ , ~the~ usual
c ~ . raucous 'new music' sound once a g a i n N o t a
I , I t o i it! For, not to be outdone, Stockhausen has seen to it that this
well, 'acoustic material' - is then fed into the gadgetry workcd, or
'Iu.~.iormed',by the other two participants, who process and alter
I l l r . volume and timbre of the material. Four speakers emit both the
i!:inal and the electronically treated sounds simultaneously for thc
1.J1.4 of the audience. (John Cage has not reacted favourably to the
IIII.:~ of the raw 'new music' sound being thus tampered with by the
will of human beings. It is said that Cage was present for one of
\~c,c,khausen's concerts, but that when Stockhausen began using
I U t1cntiometers etc. to alter the acoustic produce of the other perforI I I I . ~ ~Cage
.
stood up haughtily and walked out.)
IJpon composing a lengthy picce which he chose to call Sirius,
c r things about the work.
Y~rrckhausenwent on to explain a n ~ ~ m b of
I'l~cjumble of sounds comprising the picce he claimed to reflect the
I osnlic music which inund;ttcs 11ic earth from the heavenly body of
I I I I . title, and from the cosmic hcings dwclling thereupon. ( S i r i ~ was
s
~c.lv;tsr.din a format most ;~liint o the presentation of rock recortlit~!:.;:the psychedelic covcr tlcpicted an unclothed Stockhausen, as
IIIOII/:II in the role of rock 'star', lying on the sea-shore and
Id~otogr;tphed
stylistically whilc gazing up at a cosmic sky.) Follow111): tllc release of the work, Stockhausen claimed with intcnsc*
.l~.ri~~i~sness
to have a c t ~ l ; t l ldescended
~
from a civilization of tltc
' I )og St;~r'.For their ~ ; I I .csotcricists
I,
found much of signillc;t~~cc
it)
Illis st;ttc.ment ,. Ccrl;tin critics, however, contentctl thcmwlvc.c
w i l l 1 I hr observation th;~tit was probably timr ior ~I1cr t r / ; r r t ~~r,rriljl~*
t onlcmporary music to he returned home.

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

114

THE B.F. SKINNER SHOW, OR MUSIC TO GET UNDER

YOUR SKIN
Now, as we approach the close of the twentieth century, the dream
of those 'new music' composers who began it - that the works of
Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven would be left far behind by the
wonderful new advances which the 'new musicians' heralded seems without doubt to be close to full realization. The orchestra has
been successfully replaced by electronic filters and potentiometers.
W i t h typical twentieth-century ingenuity, it has been perceived that
when music is indeterminate in any case, and relies fully upon a
network of electronic connections t o determine the resultant sound,
then thc old-fashioned score-sheets are therefore not only
unnecessary. but even unemployable. Thus, the instructions for
music today often consist only of circuit diagrams and notes on how
the various items of electronic equipment s h o d d be connected up.
Lest conditions become ripe for B. F. Skinner himself t o g o on
the road, perhaps it is time to gct back t o simplicity. And what
could be more simple than the sol(-)performer?
In Alvin Lucier's (b. 19 3 1 ) 1 96 S 'composition', Music For .'?olo
Performer, the 'performer' has thrcc Glass Instrument silver
electrodes placed upon his licad. 7'hcse pick up his alpha-waves and
amplify them through spc;~krrs;the resultant sound is then used to
activate a varicty ol prscllssion instruments placed in front of the
~ ~ c a k e r s Vcry
.'~
wrll. let us put it down to typical 1960s'
exuberance; but striking a more sinister note by far are the statements of ;I $rowing number of individuals who - all humour apart actzralb are m ~ n i c ; ~Skinnerians.
l
Thcir ideas have already assumcd
sufficient import;[nc-c- to gain an honorary mention in the Larozrsse

E ncydojedinof-M //sic:
The ncw music niade possible by the [new] instruments and
procedi~rcs .. i'lill no/ be less, o r move valid - it will be different
[my italics]. Ir 1i;is been said that in a few years' time, our understanding of tlir rc.:cctions of the central nrrvr~ussystem will have
advanced so f : ~ rthat it will be possible to produce 'functional'
music predetrrmincd ;~ccordingto parameters defined by thc laws
of sociology and human behaviour. Knowledge of sensory
systems will permit thc diffusion of this music by dircct application of electrical stimuli. T h e musical element will be established
by an electronic syntlicsizer fed with a score in the form of a
computer programrnc. The 'instruments of music' will have
become a clinical electrode applied to the forearm.I9

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

115

I I 1 1 1 c.ommerua1
~
proliferation of such 'music to g r t under the skin'
11.1.. lot arrived yet, the same cannot be said of the commercial
t~tt)liic-r;~tion
of musical vibrations applied directly onto thc surface
4 1 1 11ir skin. T h e inventor, David Lloyd, receivrd thc idca o n e day
wllc~lanother of his inventions, a musically-vibrating flying saucer
w l~iclihung from the ceiling, fell d o w n and onto his lap. T h c srnsitI 1o11'felt good' t o him: 'It made m y whole body tingle.' (And
Ilc.ilcc, the dividing line between the musical arts and the 'feelgood'
tlsug-like experience becomes less distinct.) Lloyd began marketing
t hr idea in the form of a two-inch disc which can be attached t o tlir
wxistband of shorts or panties. While listening o r dancing t o music,
tlic vibrations can also be transferred directly t o the body. Lloyd
Irrst put out the discs 'as a joke', but found that the 'rock 'n' roll hot
p;tnis' idea caught on fast. However, certain implications associated
with these musical vibro-discs are somewhat less of a joke.
Researchers have discovered that when vibrations are applied t o one
part of the anatomy, as for instance during a workman's use of a
pneumatic drill, the vibrations travel throughout the body and to
every organ. As we shall see in the next chapter, the acoustic effects
of the rhythms of much modern music have already been found t o be
harmful to the human organism. O n e wonders, therefore, what
effects might be expected whcn those same rhythms are transferred
directly-to the body by means of raw vibration. The spiritual/
philosophical implications of using music in this way are also
sobering. T o the idealist poitlt of view, music should be used in
order t o influence man's spirit~ralnature, inspiring his soul with
feelings of love, beauty, rczolulioll. ;~ltruismand all good emotions.
W i t h this commercial invc.nrio11 o f David LloydVs,however, we
have the application of mucic, not 10rhc spiritual nature of man, but
to the physical body, and in trrclrr t o c;lusc 'tingles' and other bodily
sensations which 'feel goo~l'.A plioto8raph, published to show the
musical vibro-disc in action. tlispl;iys thc torso of a near-nudc fcmalr
with the disc's lead d i s a p l ~ r ; t r i rclown
~ ~ the front of a pair of vcsy
brief panties.
I t can be seen, then, r l i ; ~ r with the coming of new ypes of music.
come also new uses of music, the niusic and its uses bcing of ;I sin~il:rr
orientation. The new brrrci c ~ fmusician, being fully S k i n n c r i ; ~I I~I
outlook, can be said to r.otlstitute the ultimate and incvit;tl>lt. I.CSIIII
of the reductionist-materi~~list
approach t o the art. If tlrc 1711qj1 I I I
music is not t o sublimate. nian's being and spiritualizt s0cic.1 - i I I I l i .
aim :,f all a n is not to dircct consciousness .f 'hrc:~u\c.I IICIY.
I., l l t r
.f ' - then it logically follows that music shottlil ins1 c,~clI N - t14(.<11 4

I0

T H E 'NEW MUSIC'

T H E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

,ursue hedonistic goals. Music becomes not so much an art as a

I nethod by which the musician can experience sensuous pleasure,
LLmass we,alth, boost his ego, and gain power through the ability to
c:ontrol ot hers. All of this we see today in the endless production-line
. .
of the rock-muzak 'industry' - which is an industry, and not an art,
since the prime moving motive of the musicians, managers and
technicians is those wads of greenbacks. I n the rock industry,money
is basically what it is all about; and thus music is directed, not
upward (thus stretching the minds of the people and expanding their
consciousness), but to the lowest common denominator. The
question of questions is: W i l l it sell? T h e standard of artistry could
not be less relevant.
Yet certain Skinnerians, who have emerged from the serious,
rather than from the popular, musical culture, are not satisfied with
the bodily 'feelgood' effect of rock, or with the industry's lucrative
potentials. More than this, these individuals are seeking, in true
behaviourist fashion, to discover thc ultimate secrets of h o w to
control living beings by acoustic means. Their questions are: Is there
a chord that can make a man go mild? A melody that, accompanying a T V ad, would absolutely r-on~jelthe viewer to buy? Are there
rhythms that can disintcgratc matter?
The electronic composcr .. V o r h ans,
~ is attempting to produce
music that goes straight to ttic nerves, bypassing the conscious mind.
His aim is to compose elcctrUlllc 111usiccapable of manipulating the
brain, inducing nrg,;ISIIIS : ~ n dbringing about LSD-like experiences.28
Elsewhere, ; ~ thc
t
r imc of W riting, certain scientists and researchers
I
are attempting t o ulhcovcr
a sound or ronal phrase that can kill a
man.
It would bc most llnwise to dismiss such devclopmcnts as imposs~
mcn
ible; history tcnds io demonstrate all too c o n v i n c i t ~ g lthat
have been itblc to develop, evmtually, almost ;inything their
imaginations scizccl llpon. The acoilstically-induced human orgasm
or anything apprn;tcliing it would certainly bring thc behaviourist
brave new world ;I giant 11
: a p nearer to cornplrtion. I t could be
expected to be only ;L matter of time bcfore industri;~linterests found
some means of over
~ t l yintroducing the 'amustic kick' onto
thc factory floor in onc rorm or another. Like rats in a Skinner box,
which are wired up to rcccivc electrical stimulation of their brain's
pleasure centre each timc they press a lever, ; ~ n dwhich press
rcpcatcdly and frantically until their bodies no longer possess thc
strength, s o the specially formulated 'music' fed to industrial
workers could be controllcd to give less or more of a 'kick' accor.,<-a-

-..m

117

IIIII!:

to the level of output. It is difficult t o see how thc acoustic kick

I l ~ c ~ o r workers
y
could be detected, or at least proved, by
~llvc.<ligativebodies. And in any case, from thc first discovery of
..l1111 ;L technique, if it proved to work very well, we can be surc t1i;tt
111~.
,ir~cntionof the industrialists and of the nations' ministcrs of thc
I., 1111onlywould be very much alerted; and the behind-the-sccncs
Iw(";r;llrc would then be on for the technique not to be outlawed in
I 111.Iirst place.
liven more difficult t o legislate would be the individual, free-will
I l~oiccto experience behaviourist music. Modern Western natiolls
11.1vcrarely, if ever, legislated against any form of music, and i~
would be a dilemma t o know where t o draw the line between le):.~l
. I I I Jillegal tonal art. Yet Skinnerian music could be as addictive a11t1
tl;c~lgerousas any chemical drugs such as heroin. (The reader will no1
11;tve missed that ominous line from Larousse, that 'The, "instr,ulllcnts of music" will have become a clinical electrode applied to tl~c,
f0rearm.'l9) If unchecked, the scope for the cold-blooded exp1oit:rlion of Skinnerian music would be varied and vast.
By the twenty-first century, it is altogether conceivable h11
Skinnerian principles to have been successfully implanted into music
10 the extent of there being music junlues, music pushers, and .I
111ulti-billiondollar industry sprung up to exploit the practice t o the
Ililt. Music could be not an art for the uplifting and spiritual
cnlancipation of humanity, but a ruthless, mechanized industry
clcsigned to milk the last pcnny from the pockets of the enslaved.
and to utterly control human behaviour for political purposes.
1111

SOME FURTHER ADVANCES IN THE ART

Meanwhile, the wolution of thc 'new music' progresses from glory
to glory. M a y we present some frlrihcr advances in the art:
Terretektorh (196J-6) by the (;reek composer, Yannis Xenakis,
c i call them an orchestra. With
~.cquircs88 musicians. O n e c a ~ ~ l cvcn
111(. slight difference that, in addition t o their usual instruments, r:tclc
pl:i y cr also performs upon maraca, woodblock, siren-whistlt .LIICI
w h i p ; all of which can hardly be likely t o relax or reassrrrr.
i ~ ~ n o c c nand
t
unsuspecting rncmber of the audience - sirrc,r I I I ~
playrrs ;Ire all seated among the ranks of the listeners.
Onr .lspect of the tota I anarch! of contemporary 11111%i(1'. 1111.
growing I ~ o d yof musiciaris keen tl3 demonstrate th;tr tlrr.~.r. i*,. ~ r ~ c l
\llould I)c no limit t o the v.a n.c.r y 0- ;1 means o f sound ~ I - I , I ~ II 11I I~r l 111
~)l-da,
why shotrid a musician have to stick t o 1 1 1 4 - ,1111 ~ I ~ I ~ I I I
;cnd so forth to produce tones? Or v v r n r l ~ r . ,:1111.11 ,11111
k ,

118

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

drum set for that matter? A foremost exponent of this theory is M a x

Neuhaus, a percussionist who has worked with Pierre Boulez.
Among the wondrous inventions of Neuhaus are instruments such as
the Water Whistle, for example. T h e Water Whistle consists of a
series of rubber pressure hoses whipping around underwater in a
pool. The hoses have whistles attached. Music (or at any rate,
sounds) are produced beneath the surface, and can only be heard by
submerging the ears.29 Inventions of such genius should of themselves serve t o demonstrate why the more traditional instruments,
which possess such a huge range of possible tones and subtle touches
of beauty, yet reign supreme. The W a t e r Whistlc and its brethren
may provide remarkable fun for the children on a Sunday afternoon,
but each is surely doomed t o join the ranks of all other nine-day
wonders.
And yet, as though programmed t o the one inflexible goal, the
'ncw musicians' persist. Increasingly, hc who would perform contemporary music is, like a 1 9 6 0 s astronaut, apparently expected to
..
be an accomplished scuiha-drver,
'
,in athlc~ t c ,and an electronics
expert, not to mention a dlab hand with a W hip. The modern performer is expected to succu mh to a11 and ev ery crazy whim of the
.
- -..- .. S o w n schizophrenic humour
composer; to embody thc. crjrnpubrr
and pretentious conccntratic-)n upon the frankly inane. W h e n an
orchestra is not prcpnrcd to d o so (and there have been instanccs of
renowned orchestras rebelling at the demands of the radical avantgarde), thcn thcy arc cl~idcdas being backward, and dismissed as
unprofession;~l.
Relentlessly, increasingly, live performances of contemporary
music cor
Tor nll a~)pearan(zes, t o combine an episode of Dr
Who wit1
r of It's cI KtzocX tout a n d an operation of the SAS.
Christoph
~ r y ,a 'S ound a~rtist' (yes. the quaint old term,
'composcr', could ncvcr last) from Boston. has cngincered a musical
instrument from n stnirwell. Photoelectric cells are attached to the
steps, and each individual photoelectric beam. if broken, releases a
series of notes stored in a computer. The 'instrument' is played by
one or more people rurlning up and down the stairs."
2

COMPUTER MUSIC
Christopher Janney's usc of computer conforms t o the rule rather
than being an exception among contemporary 'sound artists'. The
computer, like many other technological devices, is of course neither
good nor bad in itself; the cxtcant of its usefulness, and whether it
works for good o r evil, depends entirely upon the human being who

119

(As every programmer

... . knows,
...
Garbage In, Garbage O u t - is an irrcprc!
i 1 1 l 1 - ) In music, as in many other areas of lifc, the cc
11 a l l v
oifc*rs much as a labour-saving device. Thc I
~ l ~ l l l . . ~ l neutral
l y
implement, may even be capable 01 ;ucring in tric
'I I, vqsof composing music of real worth. Some young composers
. i I ~ ~ + . b find
~ l y that computers are useful t o them since it is possible t o
I~III~>OS
inC computer memory, the machine then being ablc to play
l t 1'1.i111
out the completed work. However, some would dchatc the
,~l.a,rlrc*tic
purity of even this practice. After all, how well can n
a
llllluwr play back one's latest symphony? Certainly one can
I l . ~ ~ . t imagine
ll~
that Beethoven was at all the worse for not posscisrll!:
:I computer, o r even that he would have had the slightest use for
I
in the forging of his masterpieces.
I3ut (inevitably, one must by now suppose) the use of computes
11.15I~cenat the forefront of the works of the modern marerialist
I 4,nlposers; works which seem to be almost consciously designed for
r l ~ r spczcific purpose of turning the age-old human values of
,~i.\thetiCS and the principles of beauty upside down and inside out.
11% was reported in a recent article by D o u g Garr, computers 'have
.--l
~ B.~~
c c c - s sbroken
f ~ l l y music and vocalization into their component
I ~ ; ~ r t s a nreassembled
d
them as new, hybrid sounds. Voices have
I rrcn transformed into emotionless tonal i n ~ t r u r n c n t s . ' ~ ~
Something of the kind was tried in the early '70s by the rock
!:roup Curved Air, human speech being vocoded and played back
~llrough an electronic keyboard instrument. The 'ghost in the
~rl;tchine'said a little pocm with the acoustic arena all to itself, all
3unds having halted, as cho 11g1ithe 1istener wcre expected t o
l this ultimate flash o f g('nius as i~: appeared in spotlight.
iappened, however, t h e c.n1~1 result of the experiment was
clrlotiona& cold as ice, and rnorc. th;in a littlc dull even t o Curved
Air's mainly ~ l n d e r n a n d i naudience:
~
the artistic low-point of t h r
cnrirc piece; a mechanized sound Sor mechanized minds.
I3trt progress marches on: at thc present time w e have thc
rcsrarcl~being undertaken hy Charles Dodge and the cornputcr
music drpartment which hc runs at Brooklyn College, Ncw Ytrrk.
Dodgtb 'I;r;ifts' different varii1b1c.s and factors of the souncl of cjiff'rrent singers together. Voiccs are first digitized at 15,000 c ; ~ m p l r s
per s c c o ~ ~ dand
, this analysis is then reduced to 120 s;~rn~il(.s
prr
second. which is easier to work with. A number of factc,r5 ; ~ r ~ 'I'iItrr
tl
coefficirnts' vary within each time frame - factors scrt,l~:I\ I j i ~ ~ . l ~ ,
: ~ r n p l i t ~ ~ d;tnd
c , the sounds gencratcd by w i n d l ~ i p r ,I O I I , I ; IiI: ~ ~
w,,
S

y s ~ . .lI I W
0

I(

I(

) .-

it and feeds it information.

120

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

mouth. glottis and vocal-cords. By combining the 'filter coefficients'

of different individuals, then, it is possiblc t o produce a speech graft.
For example, the pitch and amplitude of one voice can be 'played
through' the tongue, jaw and glottis of another voice.19
Doug Garr reports on the development that, 'From simple
melody to complex, eerie harmonies, the musical breadth is as if the
Andrcws Sisters had suddenly become baritoncs.' Comments music
professor Tom Jcrse, laughing, 'It's like taking one person's vocal
cords and putting them in someone else's mouth. It means you can
mix Mick Jagger and, say, Luciano Pavarotti in one voice
track . . .'29
Marvellous! ( ... Yes?) N o doukt the Ph.Ds arc being handed
out thick and fast these days down at the Brooklyn College
computer music department.
If w e hold, even just t o s o n ~ ccicgrcc, to the axiom As in music, so
in lfe, then where a runaway, l ~ o l ~ ~ ~ l ; l rart
i x e dof voice-grafting
would lead us is both difficult I O prcdict and sobering t o contemplate. At bcst it wo~lld scsc~iit o point towards a further
dehumanization of thc c.on;tl ;trts, and to yet another force present
within society to incrr;15c. r l ~ c : incidence of alienation and mental
illness. Actually, in suc,l~tli'sctiptions as that above of voice-grafting,
it is possible to notc. ;I cx:srain parallel with the grafting of gcnes in
c . lthc sccming lack of respect towards
genetic enginecrirlg: ;I ~ > ; ~ ~ ; i l lin
Nature as givcn t o us; in something of a desire t o play G o d ; a
certain hint of ;trl O,L;L::III~C~.
W e can :it Ic;~:;tI K thankful that the 'engineers' of genes are constrained, at Ir.;ts~Ior tltc present, to thc combining of biological traits
with other hinlqSical traits. The sound grafters, to their glee, are
subject to no s11iI1 constriction. Computer cxpcrts at Stanford
University, C;tlil;)rnia. for example, can mix thc sound of one
inanimate rn~tsic.;tlinstrument with another, or of an instrument with
r . results can sound likc ,I piano-guitar, a
the voicc ol' ;I \ i ~ ~ g cThe
talking flutc or ;t trumpeting soprano. Stanfnrcl rtsearchcr John
Serawn, who calls thc process 'cross-synthesis', says that the resulting harmonirs arc 'clt~itcspooky'.2'
Incidentally, I h;tvc yet to come across a written account of
computer vocoding o r other such practices which does not, in
describing the resu1t:unt sounds, use adjectives such as 'spooky',
'weird' and 'eerie'. If life pattcrns d o tcnd t o follow music patterns,
d o we really want the eerinrss and spookiness of voice grafting o r
cross-synthesis t o be the sound of music t o come?

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

:( )IIKAGEOUSLY

1 21

EXPLORING BACKWARDS

cross-synthesis is not as easy t o

\:,.I in10 as playing the guitar: the high cost of computers prohibits
\,ltic,c.-grafting and the like b y all but the more wealthy musicians
. I I I ~ I 11111sicdepartments. I B M s are still not something you can sling
0lvc.r your shoulder and take with you along the overland route to
Il~tli;~.
But all praise then for Skip LaPlante, w h o has
the
. I l i l i t p to make music right back among the more usual social stratas
I ,I society.
A graduate of Princeton University, N e w Jersey, USA (where he
9.111cliedMozart and Schoenberg), LaPlante performs o n sound
l:c.ncrators which usually cost less than $ U S 2 5 t o build. H e has
.~l,out60 of them, all different; wind and percussion instrument^.^^
Aiid the secret?
The secret of this latest advance in the art is t o raid scrap-heaps,
kitchens and old farmhouses. LaPlante has discovered pace-setting
11cw timbres from 'huge cardboard rug tubes, broiler pans, catfood
(,;Ins, even shards of glass'.29 Enthuses LaPlante: 'You can get really
clcan pitches from cinder blocks broken into L-shapes. And cuttown wine jugs make excellent cloud-chamber bowls.' According t o
Iloug Garr, our erstwhile, new-arrival sound artist 'hunts for
1);tttered and discarded wine jugs on the Bowery in N e w York
City'. And: ' H e has cvcn created music by bouncing a Superball on
;I piece of glass.'29
Yet the fact is that Skip LaPlante has heard nothing! M a n y times
I have encountered such music. and always performed by experts in
the field; even once while p;~ssingthrough a district of his own
N e w York City - here too I wirncsscd the neighbourhood toddlers
gathering together. I n this plrr ic~tlarinstance they had t w o toy tin
banjos, a kazoo and a coupl~.01 woodcn spoons with which to beat
an assortment of pots and 1711111. (Ii)r as long as their parents would
stand it). N o doubt toddlcrs i l l c-vcry city of the world d o much thc
s;imc. All of them quite unsusptctirlg that they are 'new musicians'!
However, can LaPlatitc's mrisic really be called 'new' when its
sounds are such a close kin t o those produced by the first cave m:in
t o think of banging a bone OII ;I hollow log? W e have already pos~.cI
this same moot point in rcfcrcnce to the work of John Cage ;incl I 111.
Mercc Cunningham group. Question of questions: C o ~ ~ l ci t l 111t.11
possibly, conceivably be that the self-professed musical ';~v:IIII-!:.II.~~(".
way out in front, ahead of all the others and pointing t l ~ c .t1irc.i I i o 1 1 .
arc leading us all . backlv'ards?!
If so, it may be pointless to struggle against t l ~ ci ~ ~ c . v i l . ~(l d11~. I.I
\ V ( . sllould probably be grateful that

..

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

112

1c;ist. SO thc 'avant-garde' ancl their supporters would havc us

belicvc*, for it is startling with what confidence they ,Ire able to map
out our musical future for us in advance. Doug Garr, for instance,
whcsc illuminating ;irticlc, "The Endless S c a l c ' , ' ~ a s been quoted
from scvc-ral times above. assurcdl\l informs us that. 'The riiusic of
tomorrow will not limit expression: i t will- frcc it of virtually all
restraints', and confidentl\t concludes: 'Our aural expcricncc will he
cclectic and clccrron;~.'

,l

ll

i~

ll
1

~l

1~
l

~ ~,
1 i 1 11

ASSESSING THE A V A N T - G A R D E
N o t all who work within the field of music have followed the
views in their entirety of the new 'sound artists'. A number of sane
, ~ n c i timcly cornrncncs havc been forthcoming even from nlusicians
~'110~ ~ C I I I S C ~ Vprofcsc
CS
sor~icintcrcst in t l ~ cncw thcorics and stylcs.
111 p.~rtictrlar, attention has t>c,cn ioc~usrcl rlpon the pcculi;tr ;tnd
o f thr raciic:~l.iv:tiit-gnrdc thcnisclvcs ns
q ~ ~ c s t i c ~ n ~conscictusnesh
iblc
ind~viduals.This is to pct right to LIIC cor-c o f the rn;t~:tc-r.Stephen
solcmniry with which
i2';tlsh wrltes candidly ot- t l ~ c'p~,ctc~irious
o f [~nodcrnmusic'sl Ic\\cl. cxponrnts conrinuc to rcpnrd thcms ~ l v ~ sI v ' . Y chudi I\4rniil1in, r lie liuniblc ;tnd pcrcpicacious '13;itron
saint' of good Mrc,stcr~imusir.. rcicrs to thc a v ; l n ~ - p r d cas 'mcchano'
composcrs. sincr tlrcy clisl>l,ty;nind ~vithoutheart.
Even by the c;trIy 1 O.;O>, the direction takcn by some cornposcrs
had bcctrmc. \uf'fic.ic.ntly I>iz;~rrefor T h o m ; ~ sFicldcn. in :t chaptcr
cntitlcd .Ml~;t!is (;crocl'~usic?'to w'trn 11s that:

... WC* h.~1.C , 1 1 ) rc'tiictnhcr t1i;tt w l i i l ~W C may discitrd the vulp;tr,

rvc go [ c , 1 1 1 ~ .crtl~crcxtrcmc if W C spend rrur tirnc posing and
.tciop~i~i+~,e'll~rico ~ ~ t p ~ ~ ;IS
i r great,
i ~ i g j~u q t I>cc;tr~hcb
they happrn
to 1~ i r t l ~ l ' r r11~ 'I'lic onc is just ;[S inutistic and ncjn-contrib~ltoryt o
cctlturc 2nd cl1;11-;1ctcr
as the othcr."'
(

In his esccllcr~~I ) o t r k , iMusic

it! t h r

Life qf'hlrlr~.Julius Portnoy

clearly dcfincs t l ~ cl ~ ~ ~ o l > l c m :

I l l

1'1

,,

,l,

,l!

l'!
I

A composer r n r l \ r lie. i~rihucdwith a dccp semc oispirituality, but

many of our contclrllie)r;tr> ones confi~scit wit11 sentimentality
;uid ~ssociatcit with a n ;tgc o f romantic chivalry which n o longer
has a p1;ice in a world cxpl;~ined p ~ ~ r t . l in
y mechanistic tcrminoloKY. Many contcmpor;lry composers will not toil and
bcconie p-oficicnt in thcit. cr;lft. 'They would r;tthcr bc vague ;tnd
\ilhjcctivc. ,tnd clo~tkthcni.;clvccs in ac~st1icti.cpurism so tlicrc is n o

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

123

w.ly 10 communicate with thcm musically Thcy simply follow

I I I C I I ~ ~ n ~ u l \ which
es,
is very good ds therapy for them per,,l 11r.1 l1
; but unfortunately, they d o not go beyond t h ~ point
t
and
1 1 1 1 c.11J result is often chaos, not a well-ordered niu\ical work.
h1.111yof our younger composers have lost the clu,ility of
I I I I I I I I ~ I ~ ~ , d most important elcmcnt for scrving thc Musc.
\ V ~ ~ I i o uhumility
t
there is no love o r charity, and dogmatism
1l..ll.tllY follows."

W I I AT IS THE PURPOSE OF MUSIC?

'.nI~o~lI~l
WC desire t o help reveal the actual inner nature of the 'new
.
I I I I I ~ Iand
L . , its possible effects upon the listener, then there exists a
\ , I - I y effective method of doing so. Let us recall our previous
. I I I : I ~ofOthe
~ ~seed and its end result: that the real nature of the
-.(.(.(I is only fully discovered when it has sprouted and flowered.
\2/11;1tthen, we should ask, is the ultimate goal of today's radical
U 4 ,l~~l>osers?
W h a t manner of flower d o they envision for their seed?
Wlr;i~is the purpose behind their endeavours? T o what d o they
~ \ j j i r c iD o they believe, as did J. S. Bach, that music is for the glory
# , I G o d and the betterment of man? D o they believe, as did all the
111;ljorclassical composers, that their art should be consecrated t o the
..l>iritualuplifting of society?
No. for such concepts cannot in fact be contained within the
111indwhich precludes the possibility of the vertical
dimcnsion of
~ . c ; t l i twith
~ , its mystical implications.
It is true that many, and rvcn most. twentieth-century composers
11;tve claimed to hold t o sorncs form of spiritual belief, and have
es included supposedly rnystical elements within their
ut these 'beliefs', likr C:;iSc's 'Zcn', have usually tcnded to
Irc t ~ n ~ watered-down
~ ~ e ,
;~ntl111ixcd-up;they have been, for the
A' genuine religious and mor;tl
~ n o s tpart, a severe comprc
I>ritlciples,and even, at timr!
m. W e would usually be corrcct
. .
h composers, and realizing that
111 ~gnoringthe token word.
11it.y rcmain, for all their intcllcctual posturing, atheists itntl
rc~iu~.rio~iists.
Tow;~rds what goal, thcn. do they envision their art :is I>~.~II!:
tlirectcd? Suggestions as to the purpose of music from even tlir I I I O - ~ I
wcll-inrrntioned and humanitarian of materialists arc incv i~ . ~ l r yl
found to be substantially wanting. Theorists with ;I I ~ i c ~ l o ~ : ~ i . l l
I~ackground,for instance, have frequently statcd wit 11 I . I - I I I . I I I<.IIII
unruffled confidence that all music is an imitation 01- , I I I ~ I T I . I ~ I.~I.%..
( :harlcs Darwin himself, while proceeding ratlicr nrc ,rr I ~ I I .II
I ivcl~,

124

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

suggested that musical tones and rhythm first originated when the
half-human progenitors of man evolved the sounds in order to
attract a mate, and to ritualize the process of courtship. If this was
so, Darwin believed, then it also provided the reason for man's still
enjoying music and finding it beautiful today: ' . from the deeply
laid principles of inherited associations, musical tones would be
likely to excite in us, in an
indefinite manner, the strong
emotions of a long-past age.'jl Darwin was saying, then, that
Beethoven's Ninth Symphony is enjoyed and acclaimed by us
because it reminds us of sex and courtship with hairy bcauties of
aeons ago.
A more reccnt theme is stated b y Marvin Minsky, w h o is the
head of a project at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to
investigate computer music, and a pioneer in researching the field of
artificial intelligence. The purpose of music, believes Minsky, might
be 'to relax the brain'.j2 This, W C might allow, is probably an
improvement over the Darwinian hypothesis. At first sight the idea
can even seem quite acccptablc: h;tven't we all used music 'to relax
the brain' now and again? Yct rllc hypothesis - which is shared by
many besides Minskp - is gl;iringly materialist on t w o points. First,
note the use of t h c wortl 'brain'. T h e implication is obviously
contrary to thc spiri~u.tl viewpoint, which views man's being as
being something wllich includes but also by far transcends the
physical brain. f3ut no, to the materialist, you and I are merely
bio1ogic:rl roh(jrs; Minsky and his friends are all getting ready to
relax our brains with those electrodes implanted into our forearms.
And sccond, is thC purpose of music only to relax us? That idea is
surely fill1 o f liolcs. Arc we relaxed - by the incidental music to an
action-packcd suspcnsc movie? D o football crowds chant - to
relax? For that matter, does The Rite of SprinLq or the Sex Pistols'
'Anarchy In Thc IJK' - relax us? And, still morc to the point, are
works such :IS Rccthoven's Missd 5olemnis or Viiughan Williams'
Lark Ascendiq rlcsigncd t o relax us - and not to move us, melt our
hearts, and aurakca t1,oughts of piety in our minds? Rather, good
music is designcd t o expand our consciousness, and such a n activity
demands of us not s o much a statc of relaxation ns a definitc attitude
of creative tension.
I t seems that the icfc.1 r)f the purpose of music being to 'relax' us
occurs to the mind which is locked into the -+ philosophy simply
because this supposed purposr of music is the most con!,tructive of
which such a mind can conceivr.
T h e theoretical reduction of music to being an agent of 'relaxa-

..

...

i!

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

125

1 4 1 1 I I I ~ . ;,rain' is symptomatic of thc. tinlcx. \\'I' livc In ;In ;tge

I ) 'r l vc.11 the dccpest of spiritual practices. such a, mccfitation, arc
r , ~ I I ,1,rly ~ . c ~ a r d cind such materialist tcrrns. kIrJitsiion. tlc\c.t.il~cd
a S 1 t 1 1 t 111k1.1 ;,go h? thc authors o f thc Up;inishads as 'knowlrdgc o ( ' ~ b r
I ) I I S ( - ;ind immortal ... pure unitary consciuusncss. ineffable
,t~prcmr
. . unity with t h r light that is in the slrn.
11
I ~ t , r r l from evil. ascension to God's dwelling place .. thc tr'in11111.rt(c
of physical consciousness' is assessed by modcm scicntisi>
n t a 111tlingto the mcditatur's brain's ability to rno1.c a nccdlc o n ,l11
I I ( ; tlisplay. Self-acclaimed ttvcnt~eth-ccntury'gurus', such as the
R I .~ll.~~.i\hi
Mahcsh Yogi of TM (l'ransccndcntal 1Meditation) fame.
l~lt~c.~.liar
techniques o f 'metiitation' guaranteed to fulfil the needs of
1 t 1 . 1 1 1 in the modern world by helping him to be 'unburdcncd o f
I 4.11~.ion'
and. of courw, 'relaxed'.
I I I xddition t o what we can call the 'relaxation theory' of muiic
I I 1.. tllose other -t ideas that the entire purposc of all music is t o
' I rrtrrtain'. o r that the function of rnusic is to provide 'an emotional
I . I I 11.1rsis'.
Atlother such deficicnt concept ~ r o v i d e sthe foundation stone fcr
1 1 1 ~ rnusic of Steven Halpern. Halpern has become connected in
I I I . I I I ~people's minds with the New Ape muvcnirnt - the general
I1t.licf that as we pass deeper into thr agc o f Aquarius, a new era o f
I~~~othcrhootl,
pcace and spirituality will progrc.ssively manifi%st.Yct
I I can be of no little importance that the N e w Age movement, for all
1 1 , high mystical hopes and conirncndable moral values, has thus far
. ~ I h c r c dalmost exclusively t o rhc music o f thc +- and even
clircction5.
And what, to Steven Halpttn, is rho purpose of his music? In all
1)1' his talks and writing5 t l i c , \ . I I I I C , c.ritction kecps appe'tring by
which all music, it seems. \Iio111~\1~ judpcd: that music should be
'Ilc.aling.. Again, hardly a <lcslii~;tl>lc
idea at first sight. How?ver.
! many, is frequently as
rltr rcrrn 'hcaling'. ;is uscd :IIILII I I I C ~ ( * S ~ ~ O O Cby
!,II- f:om thc genuine mr;ining 0 1 thr: word as ia the
of rhc
K~.(YIIIIII
or the 'love' of' t l ~ c\crrually permissive. For Halpern.
t
music to calm - and ).c\. [ ( I
' h c ; ~ l i n ~means
'
soothing n n ~ r;tcitying;
'rcI;~x'115 - nfter. a busv day , I ( ~ h office.
c
All much along the l i n l - \ 1 1 1
,L music:~l'I'M.
A wider and morc accrl,t,~blcdefinition of 'healing rnusiL' worrl~l
includc tonal art which hrlps to pcrfcct and align the r o r , ~ l i l, \ 1 ,1 1
man's I,cbing. I n this srnsc. classical ; ~ n dall gcnuincly gootl I I I ( I ~ II,,~
c.ertainly hc;tlinp: healing in the word's truest ancl 1'1111t.sr, l . r l b 9 l . . . i t s .I
11;trmonizr.r; ~ n dimprover of cach aspccr o f ni;111'.; I tt*rlr!!
I I I ~ ~ * . .I ] ~. t
~

1 .

120

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

:motional. mental and spiritual. In his talks, however, Hafpern has

lever see med
enthusiastic about classical music. Aftcr
ill, work s such as Elgar's tremendous Pomp and Circzlmsrance
Inarches r)r Verdi's A i d a are hardly 'healing' in the sccse of bcing
soporific, marijuana-music (as is the output of the supposedly New
Age musicians). Besides being both inspirational and spiritual.
classical music is also usually very demanding intellectually, if it is to
be fully absorbcd. T h e listener is active, not passive.
If a new and better era awaits humanity, its successful manifestation will certainly require men and women of true spirituality which is to say, men and women of both mystical heart andpractical
mind. Active and capable intellects will be an essential. It demands
little foresight t o realize that planet earth will never be improved by
sitting back in a cloud of incense or by falling asleep to an electronic
sound-massage. Is, then, t h e music of Steven Halpern, Steve
Hillagc and others truly N e w Age music? Does it raise our hearts
with inspiration t o be self-sacrificing? Does it divinely organize our
minds? Does it impel us to awaken to thc challenges of the hour in
the world at large, as, directly or in~lircctly,;tny gcnuine N e w Age
(.II,IO% o f jazz. Not whcn it
music must? Not whcn it is a n i~npi~lsivc~
is over-electronic and divorced fsonr I
-linss. Not when, as it
n~i;t.;m;t.
so often is, it is a synthrtic nlist of psy
Such music could never have bee1
1111dr.rthe system of
beliefs held by the composers of former times. Music,i,~nsof the past
humbly placed themselves in subservience to thc crc~.n;~l
pinciples
which havc governed, and always shall p v c r 11. ~ h claws of
aesthetics of all art.
W h a t happened at the beginning of our ccnttiry is that thcse
principles came to be considered as not being ctcrn;tl ; c l l c t immutable
at all. W h e n one thinks about it, the doctrine 01' 11c*xil>lcand transient artistic standards was the only basis upon wlii<~lt
the revolution
could ever have taken place. Francis Routh, thc corll1")ct.r and writer
on contemporary music, spells the new course ol ~llingsout for us in
his chapter on Schoenberg and the Vienncse school:

N o problem - Routh takes the fact completely in his stride. If the

Iloicc is between not altering our artistic standards bccausc it means
. ~ l ~ i ' r i nthe
g standards b y which w e also live, or else changing both
I ) I I I . standards of art and of life, then w e must apparently choose the
1.111c.r.Routh continues: 'If the musical ideas appear arbitrarily
l i ~ ~ k c unconnected
d,
scctions juxtaposed, the harmony illogical. then
St.hoenberg invites us to reconsider and revise our view of the
111rtsica1
art - and with it, our view of reality [my italics].'22 (Invoking
111cAs in music, so in life maxim, the kind of music described by
I<outh above would therefore lead t o life-phenomena paralleling the
,~l)ove-describedmusical phenomena. T h a t is, mental ideas would
I)cbcome arbitrarily linked and unconnected, actions would become
sr r;tngely juxtaposed, and the emotiot.zs illogical.)
Upon what, then, should w e base our value judgments regarding
;l work of art? Plato and the other sages of old believed that, to be
of value, art should contain and display the three sisters of Beauty,
'Truth and Goodness. These three qualities were conceived as being
intimately interrelated: like the Trinity of the world's religions, the
three qualities were, in fact, different aspects of the Supreme.
Moreover, they were inseparable: a work of art which was beautiful
was so since it contained elements of Truth and Goodness. Art
which did not contain such elements was automatically ugly, and t o
he shunned. I t might be said that the definition of Bcauty was that
it contained Truth, in that it was aligned t o the eternal principles of
the Above, and that it contained Goodness, since its effect upon the
pcrceiver was always a beneficial one.
Enter now the 'new music', to the proponents of which the objecand society - is anathema,
tive view of art - that art affects
since it demands of the artist ;l scnse of moral responsibility. Hence,
in order t o clear the way for ;tnarcliy in music, the objective view of
thc art must be refuted; the inseparableness of Beauty, Truth and
C;oodness must be denied, so 11i;lt WC can claim that Beauty, or
istic tic valuc, does not d r p c ~ ~ upon
tl
the Goodness, or objectivr
~sl'fc.ct,of a work. Over again, rlicn, to Francis Routh:

Once Schoenberg had accepted the break-up OS the traditional

syntax as a f a i t accompli, it is n o longer reason:~l,lc*to consider his
music by the traditional standards. Fresh ones arc needed.22

127

'1'11~three goddesses of Reatity, Truth and Goodness are in~lr1~c.11

dent and jealous ladier, each with her o w n particular 4 1 > 1 ~ ( , ~01
(.

..

;~ciivity . w e must clearly differentiate their distinct ~.ol(.\11

arc 1 0lay the basis of a valid aesthetic judgement; ; ~ n t lir wll~~ltl
l)(* IKrverse t o auocatc music to any except thc fint: '
l >

T o this one might wonder: but are not thc principles and standards
by which we judge music and the other arts basically the same as
those by which we govern our lives, and by which we structure our

tliea~of the world?

128

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

These are outstandingly twisted sentiments as they stand. But Routh

has not yet finished:
Let us be quite clear about this from the outset. The sense or
faculty with which we judge music is on a different intellectual
level from that with which we decide whether an action or
institution is good or bad, or whether a scientific theory, or
religion, or philosophical system, is true or false.22
If we reduce that philosophical concept of music to its naked
essentials we are left with: 'The sense or faculty with which we
judge music is on a different intellectual level from that with which
we decide
good or bad .. . true or false.'
Thus, we are invited to embrace a doctrine of aesthetics in which
not only have morality and spirituality becn discarded as unnecessary, but no firm standards of any forni whatsoever remain.
The wavering, subjective mortal will has ousted, or attempted to
~ . more radical still
oust, the universal laws of immutable. t ) c ; ~ u i Ya
than the make-it-up-as-we-gc~-:~Io~ig
nior;~lisis is the philosophy
implicit in indeterminate music, in whic4i 1101 cSvrnmortal will, but
mere chance, rules unrivnllcd. Tlnls, tllc'rc rcm:iins no scope for the
making of value judgmrnts at nll, sincx. wr ;trr c;~llcdto accept and
applaud whatchvcr so~inclh turn up. J)hn C:tgc, i ~ l d e t e r m i n a c ~ ' ~
godfather-supremo, informs us that:

...

Value judgrncnts are destructive to our proper I)~lsir~css,

which is
curiosity and awarenrss. H o w are you going to ~iscthis situation
if you are there? That is the question.33
And again, Cagc snaps at us:
W h y do you waste your time and mine by tryiug t o make value
judgments? Don't you know that when you grt ;I value judgment that's all you have?33
In conclusion, let us stress once morc that the flowcr reveals that
which always was contained in the seed. In ordrr to get to grips
with the real nature of the 'new music' it is necessary to discern
where the composers are trying to lead us. And when Cage speaks
of discarding value judgmcnts in relation to music, we can be sure
that he envisions an exactly similar fate for the value judgments by
which we live and relate to our fellow man. The contemporary

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

129

11111.~1( 1;111. Christopher Small, is certain that in twentieth-century

IIIII.,I(,we see 'the shape of a society t o which it a ~ ~ i r c s ' .It's
~' a
..I,, ~c-rywe may be familiar with in advance from the works of
( 11.tIrgc Orwell and Aldous Huxley.

It( )l ,LOVER BEETHOVEN; ROLL OVER MAN

l l ~ cspiritual idealist, man is essential to the process of creating
In compostwo counts: as a composer and as a
I I I ~ , , only man, and no machine, can discern those elements of
-.llil.i~ual
value and beauty which are essential to good music; and in
Iwrli)rming, it is only the heart, head and hand of man which are
.~p;tbleof infusing into the tones those subtle nuances and touches
1 ,I ilcep sublimity which makes each performance unique and worth
whilc. The contemporary 'sound artists' left, early on, much of the
~wrformingto their computers and synthesizers. But beyond this,
1l1c.y have not been slow in realizing the further possibility, which is
.I rcduaionist-materialist's dream: why not let the machines get on
with all the composing as well?
As early as 19S6, Lejaren Hiller and Leonard Isaacson of the
I lniversity of Illinois programmed their computer to compose by
wlecting notes from a chromatic scale with a range of two and a half
octaves. The program had the machine select notes at random, but
1,rjccting those notes which did not combine well melodically accortling to the traditional rules of key, and so forth.34
The following year, Max Mathews and John Pierce, upon attencling a concert, decided that a computer could do better. The two
wcre colleagues at Bell Laboratories, New Jersey and had soon
invented a computer which, thcy believed, could reproduce any
sound able to come out of a loudspeaker. Within a year, their
computer had become the first in thc world actually t o generate the
sound of, er
'music'."
Despite the 1916 composing computer of Hiller and Isaacson, the
I i t l(. of 'the world's first composing machine' is also claimed for thc
(.l(.(t ~icalengineering creation of Salvatore Martirano, who is also at
I 11c I l l~iversityof Illinois, deep in Ray Bradbury country. T h c 'SillMitr Construction' is certainly more complex than rhe HillrrIs:~;icsonprogramme, howcvcr: by activating various cornhin:~ti o ~ ~ ) i
of 2 0 I switches the computer is drrected to create vnri;~ricb~~\
OII
I)asic mclodic themes. I t can also emit its own artistic. crr.:ilit)rl\
~hrot~gli
24 independently controlled speakers.'4
Mc:~nwliile. Max Mathews, the same r1ectric;il t ' i i j : i ~ ~ c ' < ' ~II.OIII
l{(.II l..;~hor:itories,is continuing his efforts t o ilo I V - I I ( ~ I 111.111 111o-;c'
1'11

I I I I I ~ . ~on
C

...

130

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

THE 'NEIY MUSIC'

htunan beings at that concert in 19 7 . N o w also Bell's director of

acoustic and behavioural research, he works with machines such as
the Crumar synthesizer to program and create new sounds.
Mathews admits that computers may never writc thc equivalent of a
Bach cantata. Rather, ' . . . they will write something very different,
but somcthing present and furirrc generations find just as satisfy
ing'.'" ( N o doubt another case for the old clectrodc on the forearm

.. .)

And if computers are to compose and perform our music for us

from now on, then it would, of course, be unthinkable t o deny them
thc right t o run the music classroom. Should it for some reason be
considered necessary to continue to teach music to human bcings,
then it would obviously be ridiculous to leave the task t o a mere
mortal. Hence, thc Systems Dcvclopment Corporation of Santa
Monica has come to thc rescue in conjunction with thc t\iurlitzer
Corporation. In an article entitled 'Teaching Music by Computer',
we read:
will have a class of
T h e new computerized music ex
in!
pianos connected to a
youngsters simultaneously
computer. T h e classroom is silcr~t. LIII.OIIMII licrtdphones cach
child hears only his own p l ; ~ y i n;111d
~ 1 1 1 il~s~r~~c:tions
~
or musical
notes gcncratcd h\; r l ~ c colnl)utcr. D i f l r c l . ~ ~c,onibinations of
i l l rcsponsc to c;~clisr c~dcnt'sactivities
musical notes ;ire gcmc.r:~~cd
. . . Each chilcl c x n control his own progranl t o ;I tl(,,q~.cc...

''

As wrc might cxpca, the music-teaching computrr ~tcscrihedabovc is

hut a v;~rianton the standard designs for a~mpirctr-;~ssistcd
instruction which resulted from the mechanical 'tc;~cl~ingmachines'
dt-;eloped by K . F. Skinner at Harvard in thc IOTOs. Skinner's
1984-like drcirm was to see all teachers, with thcir :lbility t o be
genirinely compassio~latcand to care individt~ally I ~ ) I . cach child in
their care, rcplaccd b y consoles and flashing liphts. Absolute values
have never meant any more t o Skinncr than thcy do to thc 'new
musicians', we should rtlso note, as was reflcctcrl in the vcry title of
his book in which he set forth his idcas on lrow to reform 'human
organisms' and civilization by way o f mechanic;tl [caching machines
and other conditioning mcthods. T h e title of this famous
bchaviourist book might also be taken as a most accurate description
of the music of behaviourist 'sound artists': Rcyotzd Freedom atzd
D i g n i ~ . ~ B o tSkinncr
h
and the 'sound artists' havc hurled the
such notions as freedom and dignity t o
challcngc t o us.

131

. I I I I ~ ~ ~ I I ;and
L ~ C defunct.
~
I f thc world does nor txkc up such
I ~ . ~ l l ( ~ r ~;rnd
g c s ,give answcr, then the K . 1:. Ykin11c.r Aurotiomic
( )~c.l~c.stra
may as well be correct in their procIamation.
111

I'm

I ,M
SEATS
\ V ( . I I , L ~ J ~ ,then. briefly surveyed the cold, barrcn landscdipc. oC tlic
' I I I . ~ nn~~sic'.
~
T h e question W C must now seek to answcr is: Wli;it
11.1.~ r l ~ ceffect o f this music bcen upon twentieth-ccntury m a n ? Wow
I I . I V C ihc music's characteristics. such as everything from ati,nality
. r ~ r t l serialism to indeterminacy and Skip LaPlantc's cardbo,~rdrug
I 111)c.s,
influenced life patterns?
I,;itcr in this book xrr shall notc that whenever. during the coursc
I 11 history, a traditional, classical style of music has bcen supplanted
I I a~ rcvolt~tionof musical materialism, such revolutions hdvc tcnded
I O succeed by means of the same gcncral tactic. By introducing a
(11c:~pcrand more boisterous form of art. the revolutions have won
I~)piilarity
with the massrs. Almost overnight it scems, virtually the
hegins listcning to and craving for thc new, cheaper
c , ~ ~ t ipopulace
rc
\oilncis. And the traditional, more dtrnanding music becomes all but
Ii)rgotten.
Thc revolution o f the 'ncw music', however, has taken on a diffewrit shape. In this instnncc, the strcanl of classical music has becn lcd
,tstray down a w a y w ; ~ r dpith into rcalrns of cokd-hcarted abstraction
and mentalism. Seriouh Wcstcrn music has bcen led to its death, and
~ h fount
c
of genuine crrat ivity and beauty has all but dricd up.
T h e result of this p;irt ici11:tr revsolution. therefore, is that there is
scarcely any serioirs contcl-npor,isy nir~sicwhich thc music-lover who
possesses the slightrsc i o ~ ;01
~ spiritir;tl ;tttunemrnt can enjoy. A
century ago, concert halls wt.r.c. Lllcci with audienccs who had come
t o listen to thc latcst work of' rhc composers of the romantic cra;
toJxy W C have few, if AI1" )\C'S5 0 f serious music who arc
worih mentioning. I f wt.
I istcn at all to a contcmpor;ir):
work, then W C are biddl-n
1 cl;t Ollrs(.Ives to the latest cr;t7~'11
c l I:.LI
ion of a Stockhauscn I ) I . I :,~gc..
t * , ~ c c with
d
such a pro:q.lc.c-l, thc public have 'voted with 111cir
feet'. During the writing c r f l l l i \ vcry chapter, in 1 9 8 2 , Tolin 1:.1,1:1.,
thtn ;rgcd 7 0 , arrived in 1,ondon to pcrfornl his latrst work, t I l c . I I I l r ,
o f w l i i ~ l ione does not c.vt.11care t o remember. And r~c;~llc.l
. ,I~T~J,I
rcntly, ciid many others, h.)r midst the political a n d ;~rtisric.1 , I ~ ~ I I . I 01I
Greitt Britain. this 1c;idizg figltrc among all ' S ~ I L I I .I I~~ ~I I ~ ~ I w.I..
~ . '
forced to accept as avenue the Almeida, admittedly a Is:lr~ior~01 I I I ( . : I V : ~ I ~ I
garde, but ha rdly comparable in sizc to :I I;~rj:r rnr~\il II:III.

132

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

O f the effect of the 'new music' upon civilization w e can

therefore say that, actually, its direct effect is not so very great. Few
non-musicians listen t o o r even know of the work of today's 'sound
artists'. True, electronic and anarchistic music crops up with
disconcerting frequency on cinematic sound-tracks which are heard
by millions; and the philosophy behind the 'new music' has no
doubt filtered, unnoticed, into many areas of life. But for the most
part, in the attempt to shift music into their own
chosen
direction, the 'new musicians' have lost virtually all popular support.
The most unfortunate result of their 'revolution' is that, since it has
supposedly 'advanced beyond' the more traditional styles, little
music of true beauty and inspiration is currently o n offer.
Yet there still remains t o us the towering and vastly varied array
of works produced by the composers of the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries. And it is these works to which music-lovers
continue t o flock; it is these sublime creations of art which continue
to fill the great music halls of the world. Indeed, the music of
Handel, Bach, Beethovcn. Chopin and others has actually never
been more widely listened to than today, with the modern
availability of radios and hi-fi scts. W e therefore certainly must not
- thoven's influenced only the
suppose that muISlC such as Bee
mentalities of the pcoplc of his o wn day. Indeed, many of his
masterpieces wcrc: xcarccl.y knownL in Europe during his o w n
...., L .. .. - - magnificent
..- I,L-~-IIIUVCII
late string quartets as
lifetime. T o takc U
examples, not all o f thrsr were performed even once while he lived,
and they wcrc. played only infrequently for nearly a hundred years
after his dcatli. l'hercfore people have only really had the opportunity to filn1ili;iriz.c themselves with these stupendous creations
during our own century - a fact of perhaps deep significance.
'

TWENTIETH-CENTURY TRADITIONALISTS
The music of t h r cl;~>sicaland romantic cras contains a beauty which
is eternal and inini~ii;tblr,and thcrefore. in the spiritual scnsc, is
entirely contemporary. Aesthetically, Bach is ns meaningful and
important t o us today a \ cvcr. and to the works of'such a genius thc
adjective, 'dated', can ncSvc.rapply.
Yct, ultimately, we niu.st also begin t o look ahc;ld once more; to
reawaken within ourselves thc confident hope that a genuine New
Age music is about to dawn; it music of equal or even greatcr sublimity as the great works of thc past, and yet possessing a character
and effcct which is entirely new. And as a laying of thc foundations

. , I I C . ~ a music, a minority of twentieth-century cornposcrs have

IIIII): ~ ~ n a c i o u stol ~ the more traditional approach to music.
l:~.lii~ing
to succumb to the whirlpools of anarchy around thcrn, they
I I . I V ~ . In-oduced. even in this century, music of unique and lasting
ss. I refer, of course, to composers such as Sibelius. Kachif. Shostakovich and Khatchaturian, and to thc major
th-century English composers.
I ncse modern traditionalists have retained a more conservativc
.IIICII~;isicallytonal position whilst neverthelcss experimenting and
~ , v l ~ l v i ntheir
g art along many lines. Almost t o a man, the modern
I I .~tlitionalistshave maintained the viewpoint which is anathema to
1111- 'sound artist' - that music does exert an influence over the
1 11.1r;rcter
of man, and that the artist therefore has the solemn respon..lllility of composing only that which purifies and spiritualizes man
. I I I ~ society.
~
W h e n they have not explicitly expressed such scntiIllc.nts. the altruistic orientation of their music has nevertheless
..liokc.n for itself. And nowhere is this more s o than in the works of
I I I ( . nod ern English composers.
England had, in the nineteenth century, been devoid of good
tomposers to the extent that the Germans sarcastically referred to
I II(. nat ion as 'the land without music'. Yet England in particular
WJS. I nI the twentieth-century, to be blessed with a flourishing of
11;~tive
1musical beauty, and even, at times, sheer genius. O n e thinks
I I O L only of Elgar, Delius, Holst and Vaughan M7illiams, but of
orhcrs such as Cyril Scott, Arnold Bax, John Ireland and Michael
'I'ippett.
The works of Ralph Vaughan Willianis ( 1 8 7 2 - 1 9 8 ) combine
~ ~ tradition
s t
with new musical forms, an unmistakable
'linglishness' and a wonderfi~lly poctic lyricism, a deep love of
1l;trure and what is at timcs a so;iring mysticism. Among his greatest
worlcs are In The Fen Cotrill~y,Norfolk Rhapsodies, Towards The
I It~Xtlown Region, the unfc-)rgcttablc fantasias, the song cycle 011
I4'1~1lorkEdge, the s ympli~) I lies, and the superb piece The L r v k
: I ~ I ~ * I I ~ / I ~It~ ~ . is interesti~ry; to note that throughout V ; I I I ~ ~ ~ . I I I
Willi.ims' work, and espcci.illy in Job, the forces of good arc r.c.lu,(.
:.(.111c.t1 diatonic and ntod;tl music, while unstablc chroni;~(
ic.
tlcni~I I I ~ t.;ites
~I
evil.19
' I ' l l ( . cxreer of Gustav Holst (1 8 7 4 - 1 9 3 4 ) bcga1i unilc-r.I llr ~ . . I Il v
i1il1111~rl~~c.s
of the music of IVagner ; ~ n dthe spiritunl tc.xr\ 01 . I I I ~1 l . 1 1 1
I 1 1 t l r . 1 ( I n order better to understand and tr;in.;l:~rr 111r
I!:III.~~
I.II~!:II.I!:C*
of thesc texts, Sanskrit, Holst stiidic~eli~ 1 1 1 ~ l l . l l 1~' lI ' I~l r . * . r I L O ~ I I i ~ ~ I l ~ ~ ( led
~ ~ i tco. cHolst's
s
composirlg 01' , I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ~ 1 I I I ~ I I ~ I I . I ~

rill

I I ~ I I ~ . I I

I 11

I r.1

THE 'NEW MUSIC'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Itynins from the Rig Veda, as wcll as the operas Sita and Savitri.
Much later, towards the end of his life, he composcd that which he
believed to be his greatest work, the orchestral piece, Egdon Heath.
But between these two phases his mystical leanings had deepened
and widened, and there had appeared from his pen the t w o works
for which he is n o w chiefly known. The Hymn of Jestls, a highly
original and exalted choral work, is based upon an apocryphal
Gnostic tcxt which Holst translated, while the popular suite The
Planets resulted from an intcrest in astrology. T h c scvcn parts of The
P1atzef.r dcmonstratc all of Holst's mastcry of rhythm, harmuny,
melody, meaning and mysticism, along with a dazzling choice of
orchestration.
Vaughan Williams, Holst, Elgar and others have demonstrated
clearly that a refusal to renounce the foundation stones of past tradition and the immutable principles o f true aesthetics nevertheless
leaves opcn a vast scope for artistic exploration. For the purification
and redirection of the tonal arts, the young composers of today
would d o wcll t o bcgin with thc signposts left to us by the
twentieth-century English cornposcrs. It is perhaps in their work,
more than in anything clsc crc;~tcdin this century, that is to be
found that art which i.; fullv Jcscrving of the titlc, N c w Agc music.
And the key to rhcii- ,trtistic succcss? A commcnt by Vaughan
Williams, spoken in ~~cl'crcncc
to Sibclius, providcs thc archetypal
pattern of all thc ~i~11ific:tnt
English music of this pcriod: ' . grerlt

..

nzusic is .written, I ht*l/r~'c,

t ~ o by
t brfak.i?zAthe tradition, but by adding to

it '.
* It is for this rch:ison that wc cannot bring oursc?vcs to write the
phrasc 'ncw music' without recourse to quotation marks: not only
d o many peoplc clttcry whether the humanistic tones o f n ~ o d e r ncomposers are music :it ;ill, but it is also open to question just h o w 'new'
the 'new mrlsic's' h;i.;ic essence of musical anarchy and materialism
can be said t o hc. \hrlicthcr one thinks of the 'seric~ur'stream of contemporary music known its the 'ncw music', or o f the morc popular
rock music, the fact is th;it nothing of their basic clements are really
all that new at all. Rack in ancient Greece, the rcvolutionary 'music
of the future' was publicly ;Ittacked and ridiculed by the writcr of
comedies, Pherecratcs, who presented thc Muse as a violatcd virgin.
In the Middle Ages, thc traditional music of thc troubadours - an
esoteric group of artists - was overwhelmed by the coming of thc

1 l

135

rll~llc,ll;~ryminstrels. The troubadours' songs, outwardly about

,I. , I - . # , I c.ouragc and of a high form of romancc, had deliberately

I # #11 1111~>1:1nted
with deep spiritual allegory which only the initiated
8

t~~iult.t'.tood.
But the minstrels were the Middlc Ages' equivalent o f
1110. I I I l
~i or folk-rock musician: they dressed and livcd as hippies.
i I l l I I lll~tsicwas pessimistic and cynical, their numbers grew constan. I I I ~ IillcY met togcther irl gigantic gatherings or 'fcsts' (as thcy
,I t u 1 1 I t I l ~ c
called today). The minstrels very powerfully affected the
I*
climate of their day. In China, Lii Bu Ve, the author of Spring
~ t t r l1';111, struck out at thc vulgar music of the tyrants Hia and Yin
1 1 1 wor~iswhich could equally apply to the musical 'revolutions' of
I I I , ~ ;igc. incl~tdingour own. They arc words well worth keeping in
I I I I I I C ~tluring the course of this chapter:
111;

'I'llcy deemed the loud sounds of big drums, bells, stoncs, pipcs
. I I I ~flutes bcautiful and thought that mass effccts wcrc worth
rvllilc. They aimed at ncrv and strange timbres, at ncvcr heard of
I I , I ! ~ ~ , at plays never seen before. They tried to outdo one another
. ~ n overstepped
d
the limits.
None of this, then, is at all new. I t has all been seen before. The
I111t1,reak of musical revolution in the seeking of ever-greater
r-xcesses of anarchy and novel 'effects' is actually no more of a 'new'
I~I~r.nomenon
than the very struggle between good and evil itself.

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

137

~ l l ebody of man, so is the body affccicd - a very real and

.
. .-.
I ~ I y\rc;
I t l veritic ation of the aphorism, as irr mruii, so in ltfi!
chords,
I( c.-,c;tr(
chers hav-e discovered that consonant ,IIILI clisso~i;~nt
1 1 1 1 I e.t.c-I
~t intervaIls, and other features of music ,111 c.xrr.1 ;L l~rofound
r . I l r ~LIPOII
~- - - I I I ~ I I ' S pulse and respiration - up011 111ri1.
~.;~l.c'; ~ n dupon
.
r~lrc~llcr
their rhythm is constant, or interruplc.el ; t ~ l t l~ I I I I I J ) ~Hloc-)d
1 1 1 rssure is lowered by sustained chords and raisrd I j y c:risp, I . C ~ ) C ; ~ I ~ L I
I IIICF.
I t has been found that the tension of thc I;cryl~s is ,~l'lc.crcxlI)y
~~~c.lodies,
becoming, for instance, tightened tl~trin!; ;I clescr~ncli~~g
writs of chords. Since the larynx is very sensitivc.ly inl'lt~cttccdh y the
~ ~ n g o i nstream
g
of man's emotions a n d thougllt prorcssscs. its rc*;lcI i~bnsto music are probably indicative of whal is I~;tsir;tlly;in c.1-lix.1
01 music upon the psyche. W e can see, then, t h ; ~ tmusic ;ill;.cts r l ~ c .
I)ody in t w o distinct ways: directly, as the effcct of
011 III~.
c,r.lls and organs, and indirectly, by affecting the el
wl~ic.l~
~ l ~ cinn turn influence numerous bodily processes.
~~lirc-(~~
c4'fect of tones upon the larynx indicates, melodics causc a c o n a ~ ; i ~ ~ t
u g a of tensions and relaxations t o occur within many parts (if t l l ~
I)ody. If the musician is playing his instrument, then he and liis
instrument can also be said to be 'playng' the bodies and minds of'
~ l l caudience.
In his studies on the effects of sound stimuh upon the skelc~al
~nuscles,D r Tartchanoff discovered that:
~ I I U H I
,

- - m

3.
Assessment :
Music, Man and Society
l

I
l

~l

1
1,

I1
I

MUSIC AND THE PHYSICAL BODY

I n the one corner: the ancients and traditionalists; the conviction

that music affects character and society, and that therefore the artist
has a duty to be responsibly moral and co nstructivt-, not immoral
and destructive. I n the other corner: the rnaterialis~
ts, disclaiming
responsibility and the need for valuc judgm,cnts, pay]ing no heed to
the outcome of their sounds. This sccond camp contains not only the
radical avant-garde, but also the entire mass of the much more
popular and culturally signific~untjazz and rock musicians.
W h o , then, is corrrct? Upon the answer c o d d depend the entire
future of music and civili7,ation. I t is time for a detailed appraisal of
this crucial issuc. Do life patterns follow mrrsic patterns or do they not?
This chapter rnuat l x an arena from which only one of the two
opposing philoscipl~~r.s
can emerge intact.
H o w valid wcrc llic beliefs of the ancients? W h a t modern, scientific evidencc is thcrc in support of their concept of music's objective
power? Let us exitmine in turn, in this chapter, the questions of
music's possible influence upon the physical body, upon the
emotions, upon thc mind, and upon society at large.

~i
'l

1'

I
1

T o the question, 'lloes music afkct man's physical body?' modern

.
.
research replies iin the c11zar affirmative. There ir scarcely a single
fanction of the bod'y ~ ' ~ h iC,iznnot
h be affected mustlizl tones. T h e roots
of the auditory nr:r'vcs arc more widely distributed and possess more
1
extensive connections r11;tn
those of any other nerves in the body (a
fact which may be of dccp inner ~ i ~ n i f i c a n c c ) .Invcstigation
~'
has
shown that music affects digestion, internal secretions, circulation,
nutrition and respiration. Evcn the neural networks of the brain
have been found to be sensitive to harmonic principles.
According to the nature of the music which plays its vibrations

'

1) Music exercises a powerfill influence on muscular activity,

which increases or diminishes according to the character of
the melodies employed.
2) W h e n music is sad or of ;l slow rhythm, and in the minor key,
the capacity of muscul:tr work decreases t o the point o f ceasing
entirely, if the musdc has I~ecnfatigued from previous work.
The general conclusion is 111;tt sounds are dynamogenic o r that
muscular energy increases with the intensity and pitch of the
sound stimuli. Isolated tones, scales, motifs and simple tonal
sequences have all been found t o have an e n e r ~ i n geffect upon
the muscles. j8

A further possible effect of music upon the body is described by Rol)

Larson, the one-time rock guitarist who gave up his playing
becoming a Christian. Larson writes :
Drs Earl W . Flosdorf and Leslie A. Chambers ~ O I I I I L Iin

,i

II~I.)II

\c.ric.s

138

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

of experiments that shrill sounds projected into a liquid media

coagulated proteins. A recent teenage fad was that of taking soft
eggs to rock concerts and placing them at the foot of the stage.
Midway through the concert the eggs could be eaten hard-boiled
as a result of the music. Amazingly few rock fans wondcred what
that same music might d o t o their b0dies.j"
N o t the most appetizing of thoughts. Anyone for hard-boiled punk
rocker?
And on the subjcct of modern popular music, with ~ t sgreat
emphasis on fast, loud and syncopated rhythm, it is worth remembcrlng that rhythm in m u s ~ cexerts a vcry st rong i n f llence
~
ove.r the
heartbeat, tending t o bring it somc,what int o confor,mity wit1I the
1
l ' .
1
rhythm of the music itself. Since many young people
usten
t.~o nours
of rock music pcr week, one shudder5 t o imagine what effect t h ~ s
must havc upon their health ancl life\p,~n;iherc is no doubt that
while the music is being listcned t o , the hcart also beats unnaturally
. .
fast and strongly
{lions arc: also rcflectcd in syncopation~,o r unn
the heartbeats. Jagged jazz and
rock r h p h m s ha^
tally d e nlonstrated t o caust the
~ C I I C C L rhythm. Rescarch has
beating of the h r ; i ~ i I O rohc I L ~---Ldiscovered rock I I ~ L I S ~ LI.O I>c I.):id for digestion; it is also dangerous
while driving. Fi~rthel.,si11c.crock raises the blood pressure, it is bad
for cases of prc-cxisril-lg hypertension. And since the heartbeat in
rtnd emotions, these too become subject t o
turn affects one'\ 111ooc1
the inflilcrlcc o I ~,oc,krhythms when thcy are heard, tension and
inharmony of [h(. 111i11clbcing increased. Indeed, rhythm affects not
only orlr bodics. niinds arid emotic,ns, but even our subconsc,ious.
Mrho h.1:, not sudcJcnly rea.lizcd that his leg was movil ig to the beat
of somc lx~ckgr(
) I ~ n dmusic: while t1hc conscious mitltlI was ent:irely
directed clscwl~crci
Thosc rhythms which are more harmonious ; ~ n dhealthy havc
been found, dcpc-ntling on their tcmpos, to 1~ vcry effective
stimulants or sed;~tivc.s,;tnd they are of course much Illore beneficial
in the long run th;m ~ o x i caddictive
,
chemicals such :IS Valium. Julius
Portnvy tells us :
'

-L

music can definircly changc metabolism, affect rnuscular snergy,

raise or lower blood prcrsllrc, and influence dipcstion. I t may be
able tu d o all these things more successfully and pleasantly than
any other stimulants that produce those changes in our bodies."

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

139

\I'lrcrl~c*rrhythm stirs us up or soothes us d o w n sc.c.111~

to dcpcnd
r i lh o~w its frequency of beats relates t o t h ( . 111 )1.111;11 hcart1'111 ~ ~ . ~upon
1 1 r - . 1 [ 0 1 ' 6>-80beats per minute. A tempo at about the s,tnlc, p;~c'c
its
~ l ~ normal
r .
heartbeat soothes us, as if our body think^^ 1 0 it\c.lf: '/\h,
I ~ I . I I ' \ right, v ~ e ' r eboth together in unison.' I n fa(1, 1 1 v 1 1 1 1 1)11t yollr
1 1 . 1 1 r t l over your heart while listening t o such m~l.iic,y o i l will (ilid
t 1 l . 1 1 rlic hcart tends quickly t o correct any discrep;~llc.yi 1 1 i t \ 1(.1111)0.
.III(Icomes into
rhythm with the music. K ~ I V I ~ IWIIIC.II
I I I ih
!:l1 t l l ( *
a.la~wcrthan the heartbeat. however, builds suspens1
l 0 Ill(,
I r c l r l y is getting ready for the music's sudden speed-1
11[)rm;11rate of the heart. ('Any moment n o w . . . ..-. , . I O I I I ( , I ~ ~
~ i o w. . .'). At the other end of the scale, fast rhythms i,li.;t. tlrr Ilc.;rlt
\C'
Irc.;~trate, and therefore emotional excitement, right 111'. , ~ I I ) ' U IC.III
~ r this
r ~for himself, as there's certainly nothing subtlc ; t .l ) r ) l i t. i t . COIIIII
I ch;iir,
I I I ~number of heartbeats over a minute of silent s
I l ( * f:l51
111. if listening t o avcragcly paced music. Then swit
illi1111t
171usicand, after a minute or two, count your heart1
.'l,i~;llll.
Since fast rhythm releases into the bloodstream chcmic:~ls wl1icl1
c-ucite the organism, such music can literally be said to givc a 'kick'.
When a young person is used to listening t o fast rock music ior ; I
1111niberof hours per day, such kicks literally become a form of
.i~ldiction,and a sense of emptiness is experienced if for some reastn
I I I ~music cannot be listened t o for a polonged period of time.
Although no research has yet been conducted on the subject t o thc
,111thor's knowledge, it also socms likely that the heart-ratc of such
I'cople is faster than that r,f othcr people even throughout the day,
1~1bilethty art not listenitZ<Q, I0 //l(, ,v~rrsicitself: If so, this would have
sobering implications for the pl1y5ical and emotional health.
effect W 11ich diffcrcnt rhythms have upon us
In part, the
I . I I ; I V be determined b y thc first r l ~ y t l ~ which
m
we ever hear. This is
IIIII
lothe her's heartbeat, hcarcl
11s continuously over thc months
wl~illlwe spcnd in the wnrnh. In ~111experiment conducted by Dr
I.(.(* S;~lk,a recording was I,l,~yedof a normal heartbeat T o r ,
~ i ( - w l r o ~in. ~a ~hospital
s
nurscrby. M o s t of the newborns were sootllc~l
r r I ,II*I.~>. Then D r Salk put o n the accelerated heartbeat of an rxcitc.cl
I T C I ~ ~ O I I'I'he
.
t w o r e c o r d i r ~ ~wcre
s
both at the snmc volurnc,. 1,111
I I I ( - sccor~d was plnycd every single one of the infants , I wc )kr,
most I 1 1 t l ~ c mtcfnse and some crying.""
A
1
i t r.rl1lc.r off-beat and less common effect of music i \ t 1 1 ( ,
~ n y s t c ~ i~~n)e~l o~dsymalady known as musicoarnit rpilcp\y. Sonlr oi
I [ \ vitlillls 11;1vcbeen tormented t o thc point of r.trn1nri1tiri,q s~~iciclc
h

140

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

or of muder. Seventy-six cases of this malady have been documented, but there are no doubt many other sufferers who simply do
not realize the source of their problem and have received no specific
treatment. In each documented case the sufferer experienced seizures
which were brought on by certain kinds of music, though the causative music was different in different cases.
One instance involved a 39-year-old British woman who always
felt anxious and sweaty when certain tunes were played in places
such as the supermarket or at the local pub. At first she did not
connect the music to the symptoms. She knew only that at these
places her thinking would often grow cloudy, and her lips, eyelids
and fingcrs would twitch convulsively. Then she would lose consciousness. Only at length did she connect the seizures with the
background music. The woman was examined by neurologists Peter
Newman and Michael Saunders who attempted to induce a seizure
under controlled conditions. Various kinds of music were tried, such
as music from Gilbert and Sullivsn, H;~ndcl's Messiah and
Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. but wirh no rcsult. Only when a
single by the Dooleys was played, ' l ' I ' l l i l ~ k 1'111 (;onna Fall in Love
With You*, did an attack c.)ccur.'l1(I3y IIU- sound of the singularly
original title it would proh;thly II;IVI* 11;1i1 111(- s:tnribeffect o n quite a
few of us !)
But if only 76 proplc h;tvc bccn fijund t o huf'f'cr Ilom musicogenic
aspects of
epilepsy, the same cannot bc siaid of othcr unIi)r~rlrr;~tc
some typcs of music. Take one of the most basic cl(-rlrcntsof modern
music - its sheer volume. Sound is measured in ~lrc.il)c.ls.and experts
believe that human health is endangered by any sor~lltli t 1 90 decibels
or above. It has been found that at dance halls I I I ~.lvc.rage decibel
rate in the middle of the dance hall is a little undo. 1 I0 decibels. In
Remember
front of the band the sound often reaches 120 dcc.il~c.1~.
that coagulating protein? Should the reader, i1po1.1speaking to a
regular disco-goer, find that the reply conics s ~ ~ m c w h ainart
ticulately, it may be because the disco-goer's britins ;Ire still calcificd
from the night before.
O r perhaps the person just can't hear you. 'T'llc Environmental
Protection Agency in America has discovered 1l1;1t current generations of youth suffer from hearing problems normally associated
with fifty- to sixty-year olds." Time magazine has further reported
that permanent loss of hearing among rock fans is a much more
common complaint than is generally realized.43(So now it becomes
clear. That's why disco music has to be played so loud: the higher
the volume, the more the hearing degenerates, and the higher the
volume . ..)

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

II

141

I h(.

cars of a rock fan happen to have so far stood up t o the batis nonetheless certain that his body has been internally
I ~ ~red.
I . IT o quote from Bob Larson once more, who, having once
1 1 1 1.11 :I rock musician, is now a campaigner against the music:
11

I~II!:,

it

I ' l l ( . hormone epinephrine is shot into thc blood during stress or

. ~ ~ ~ s ior
c t the
y simulated experience of submitting oneself to an
. ~ l r ~ ~ o r nvolume
ial
of music. When this happens, the heart beats
~.r~)iclly,
the blood vesscls constrict, the pupils dilate, the skin
I ~ . ~ l rand
s , often the stomach, intestines and oesophagus are seized
Iry spasms. When the volume is prolonged there are heart flutters.
A three-year study of university students by investigators at
( ;rrmany*s Max Plank Institute showed that 70 decibels of noise
t.1 )nsistently caused vascular constriction - particularly dangerous
if' the coronary arteries already are narrowed b y arteriosclerosis.3 9 p 44

/\ntl rhat's 'only' 70 decibels; we must remember that the volume at

III* .ivcrage dance hall reaches much higher.
111 conclusion, we can say that insofar as the ~hysicalbody is conr.rncd, the notion that music has no effect upon man, or that all
11111sic
is harmless, is absolutely i l l crror.

MUSTC AND I'I,ANTS: S O M E PRF.T,IMINARY FINDINGS

\AlI1;11 01' 111r.r - I I t v I * . 01 I I I I J ~ ~ I I I ~~ , ~ I I II ~ I I - ~ I I I I I I . I II ~I I ~ ~<:cst;~irlly
?
the
r l I
1 1 1 ~ . ,1111111.11 I , . I I I I * ~110
~ I I1 I1 0I1~ \r1'111 i111l~crviot14
to the
~Icn17r.11~,
I I , I I 1111
1 1 1 ~ 1 1I v
, I ~ ~ , I I I II I ) I I ~ \ . In o n c experiIrlIl~lrllr 1 1 1 (.IIII(.~.
111t-111( I I I I I ~ I I L
l)y. ~1v.y1
C C I~~ t r l a r ! ~ ~ ~ . t - , I, . I I ~ , W ~ - I . ( '!:ivc'n thc frcc run of
I W , 1 ,,I.II;II.;I[V
I ~ I Ico1111t+t
~
I v t l 15,
I,,,
k.1I I L ~ I I w,rCn
l ,c.il~g'piped through'
i l l 1 1 1 r..lcIl 01' tlicn~- 13:kt 11 1 1 1 1 1 1 otlr., 1 1 1 c li illto IIIC other. Though the
I W ~ 1
I ) r ~ c were
s
idcn1ic;tl . 1 1 1 1 1 ,111 I I I ~ I c.onclitions
(.I
except the music
w1.1.c. r.cl\l;~I, the rats ;III < I M - I I I I I I V I I 1i11win the Bach box. T o test
Il~rtli(.r lhc purity 01- : I I ~ r..ci)r.~.irncnt;tlconditions. the music
11r.r ~;~cIr~;tst
into the twr, I H I Y ~ . ~ w.I*+
.
c.l~;~nged
around; and gradually
I 11c r;rlf :III moved into t h v I 11 11r.l- I )ox. Such an experiment does not,
()1' C ~ I I I * F C *mean
,
that the cl-i:~I 111-c.speferred or 'comprehended' Bach
o n thr wme level that ii Ilrlrllan being can, but the result does
ilrJicntr that at some levcl. r l ~ cdegree of pleasure or pain which the
~.;~ts
cxpc:rienced in the two boxes was tipped
in favour of the master
-( 11' Baroque.
Other experiments have found that certain types of music cause
1 l c . 1 1 ~ to lay more eggs and cows to give more milk. (Stockhausen
~ I ~ I I I I I * .

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIB'rY

once visited a site at which battery hens were laying more eggs to
the strains of The Blue Danube. Recalling the incident later, he commented that his own music would have given the hens diarrhoea!)
There are also long-standing traditions from various parts of the
world that singing and instrumental music causes farm animals to
thrive.
In order to produce the most precise and unambiguous results
from experiments, however, scientists often revert to the study of
the more primitive forms of life. In the investigation of the effects of
music upon life, a number of preliminary experiments have been conducted with plants. Paradoxical as it may seem, music's effect upon
the more primitive vegetable kingdom is one of the most convincing
methods of all for proving that music does affect life, including
human life. For experiments conducted with humans, and even, to
some extent, with animals, have the extra factor of the mind to
contend with.'This means that while men or animals may be demonstrated to have been affected by tones. the effect may not have been
a direct or objective one. Rather, thr effect upon the body may have
been caused by the mind's subjective reaction to the music heard. In
the case of plant-music rc.se;irch, however, psychological factors
cannot really be said 1.0bc present. If music can be shown to affect
plants, then such ctffccts I-i;~veto be due to the objective influence of
the tones directly tlpon thc cells and processes of the life-form.
And sucil results have been forthcoming. While plant-music
researc,h is still I:o ;I large degree an unexplored and beckoning field
for resc:archers, :come preliminary investigations have turned up some
pretty ..-,.--I-:,..
L L I ~ ~ I I I L , I Sfindings.
L~~~~S
T w o qt~itcindependent series of cxperiments, one conducted in
the Sovict I.!liion and the other in Canada, have each discovered
that seeds r)f whcat can be made to grow faster whcn treated with
tones. Thc Canadian sound-treated wheat sccdlin~s,in a carefully
controlled labor:itory environment, grew no less than three times as
large as untrch;~tc.~l
Thc Soviet seedlings wcre dosed with
.ones.4'
. e result
ultrasonic tones
that they grrminatcd fastcr, were
yielded more grain." These are obviously
more frost-resist
1 for practical application in the world.
findings of greal
Another serica 01 ~xperimentstreated plants with (to?) Bach's
brilliant Brandenburg Concertos, with which, ;tt an early stage in
this book, I mentioned my own experience. The Brandenburgs
made geraniums grow faster. As an intercsting side-experiment,
other geraniums had not the concertos themselves, but only their
dominant frequencies broadcast to them. This group grew faster

"11, but not as much

group which had no sounds broadca"
13randenburg group proper. This suggests that while the
I I I I I I V I ~ ~ I I ; ~tones
~
of Bach's music exert a certain regenerative
~~,ll~lt.rlcc.
upon plant life, the effect is great" if the frequencies are
I,l.~v.rl
i l l the precise and beautiful rhythmic, melodic and harmonic
! ~ I ~ I I . I . \ in which Bach actually placed them. Investigations of a
I ~ I I I ~ 1';lshion
. I ~
have also been conducted upon bacteria. These have
I t l - 4 ' r l i11~1ndto die when certain freq~enci's are played t o them,
11,11111. ~Iicy
multiply in response to others,
A n intensive series of studies carried out by Dorothy Retallack of
I r , . t ~ ~Colorado,
~r,
demonstrated the effects of different kinds of
I I I I I ' . ~ ~ on a variety of household plants. The experiments were conI I e lI11.cI under strict scientific conditions, and the plants were kept
( ~ ' I Iltin large closed cabinets on wheels in wlyicly li#l1t, temperature
.III,l ; l i r were automatically regulated. Thrcr IIINIYS ;I dity of acid
I , l , l<, l ~ l v e dthrough a loudspeaker at the siilc. 0 1 l l l l ' cithinct, was
l , lllllLl to Stunt and damage squash plants, pllil~tlc.llcll'( ;lllcl corn in
I I I I ~ I ~ Ifour
' weeks.
of thv I W O ~~~~~~~1.r.111 I)rllv('lM l.s Ketallack played the
'1'11f' 1 ' . 1 1 1 1 1 > ' I l . l l i l l l l ~ WCI'C
I ,lcliO stations to two groups of
KLIR
S ~ I I I II,IOV.IIA I * J . I I I ( N'I'll(.
I),
li I M N (a rock

1.42

11 1 1 1

I,

143

.I

1111.

I ) I ~ N I J Y I * Posf rrpor1 ('c1 :

cxpcrin1r111,1 1 ~ I I ~ I I I ~
1
lI11.1.cweeks. Dorothy
r ~ l l l b < i t 1 1 1 l ,i1 1 / I - ~ ~ ] I ( . I ~ I I ~ l l dVaniUa Fudge to
r l r l l . ~ : I . o I I ~ > of beans. c d l ~ l . l - . t ~( I I L I ~ ~ t~0 1 ~
' 1 1W
, )morning
~
glory 2nd
l I I ~ ~ - I I - :, ;, l l ~ illso
( O I I I I . I I I I I I ~ I .I,-?.ttf;llll-g;(rdeatonal music to a
, ~ + , I I I I L I j:ro~~p;
and, as :I I ~ I I I I I I I , I i l ; l y r "()thing
~~
to a third goup.
\.t'itllin 1c11days, thc p l . ~ n ~ crrl>tr\~.cl
.
~ I JLed Zeppelin and Vanilla
I:t~~l!:c wcre all leaning , I W , I ~Iioln thc speaker. After three weeks
llicy wcrc stunted and clyillg. The beans exposed to the 'new music'
Icancd I degrees from r llc speaker and were f ~ u n dto have middle\izrd roots. The plants lcft in silence had the longest roots and grew
lllc highest. Further, it was discovered 'hilt plants to which placid,
,lcvc)tionalmusic was played not only g r e ~two inches taller than
III

,IIII)I~,(T

k pl;~yedthe

I~r.~,~ll.lt

1 1 . ~ 1

111

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

plants left in silence, but also leaned towards the speaker.

Such plant-music studies are crucial for the reason we have
already stated: assuming that they are well-controlled and the results
accurate, they are able to prove something which experiments with
humans or animals are unlikely to: that the effects of music are objective, and not dependent upon the subjective preconditioning of the
psyche. Let us recall that besides the ancients' belief that music
affects the body, emotions and mind of man, they also claimed that
music's power was objective, not subjective. That is, they claimed
that different types of music are inherently good or inherently bad; that
certain combinations of tones are objectively life-enhancing and
evolutionary in nature, while others are unhealthy and dangerous.
Should the ancients' belief be true (and Mrs Retallack's work
suggests this to be the case), then it would be a fact of vital
significance. N o longer could modern musicians possibly claim that
music is a matter of 'taste', or that the musician should be allowed to
perform anything he chooses. Moreover, those types of music which
are objectively good or objectivcly bad might not always be found
to conform to people's own subjective likes and dislikes. Since all
q p e s of music are liked hy some individuals and disliked by others,
it stands to reason t11;lt tlicre must be instances whcre objectively
bad music is netrerthclcss 'liked' by a certain misguided segment of
society. P!ant-n iuhic rcs carch, then, in supporting the ancient
wisdom teachin& ,111 &lLAIC objective power of music, apparently
C%
in
olic.
disprov
swcac.pthe entire contemporary hedonistic, anarchic
viewpo int on rh c art. In short, it stems to offer to us a scientific
basis from w 1n ~ 1c ,;L~ ipermanent and inflexible aesthetics of music can
be constructed. Permanent and inflexible because true aesthetic
principles ; u ~I I O ~ subjective, but, as we noted in the previous
chapter, arr ~univcrsal.Good music is still good music cven if there is
no human lis~c-ncr.'There is still a life-giving forcc within it.
The question of what constitutes good or bad music can be
answered in just cight words : good music gives lifc ; had music gives
death. There is more to life and death than thc two sides of the
grave: evety rnomerrr of' music to which we subjrlrt orrrselves may be
enhancing or t a k i q czrlwv our Ilfe-energies and cllrri!y of consciousness,
increment by increment. t;rorn the point of view of the ancient Chinese
sage, the phenomenon of individuals today 'liking' or 'enjoying' bad
and destructive music, wliilc not being able to cnjoy or understand
genuinely good music, would bc exnlained by the fact that such
individuals have become 't11nc.d into' the wrong tonal patterns,
simultaneously losing their attuncrnent wit1h Reality and universal
principles.

,.

C..-

145

I I I I )orothy Retallack's own words: 'If rock music has an adverse

plants, is the rock music listened to so long and so often by
1111
yo~~ngcr
generation partly responsible for their erratic, ch:iotic
I)!I ~ . ~ tjur?'
f i ( And: 'Could the discordant sounds we hear thesc days
1111.rc.;tson humanity is growing n ~ u r o t i c ? ' ~ ~
I ) I 'l'. C. Singh, head of the Botany Department at Annanialia
I lr~~\fcrsity,
India, has also conducted research into the effects of
I I I I I , ~ on
~ ~ plants. H e discovered not only that constant exposurc to
I . ~ ~ . l c . : t lmusic caused $ants to grow a t twice their normal spced,
1 1 1 1 1 .~lso
went on to find what seemed t o be one of the main causes
l l ~ i saccelerated growth. The sound waves of a musical instruI I L ~ . I I ~ , Dr
Singh found, cause increased motion in cellular
1 1 t l ~~oplasm.
As a further test, a tuning fork was sounded six feet
I t v . 1 ~from a ~ l a n t and
,
this also caused streaming movements in its
)loplasm. (Protoplasm is the basic material of which all plant IIIII ;~nimaland human - life is made up.) ALI sorts of intriguing
1 q l t ions for further study occur to one here. Would the protoplasm
1 1 1 . Iound to stream at a different rate when tuning forks of different
I O I I C - Sare sounded? Would there be a distinction between major and
l1lilior notes? D o certain instruments inhibit growth, irrespective of
w l l . ~ r they play? In D r Singh's experiments, the violin was found to
11,. one of the most life-enhancing instruments of all. Altogether, lifer.~lll;tncingcharacteristics as a result of music were shown in balsam,
-,il!:;Ir cane, onions, garlic, sweet potatoes and other plants
I,r-;i'lp~.'~,~'
the most interesting and significant of all of D r
Yct
I;illgh's findings was that later generations of the seeds of musically
..Iirntrlated plants carried on thc improved traits of greater size, more
Ir..~vc.s,and other characteristics. &litsic had changed the plants'
t l~lo~nosomes!
Presumably thc s;tmr cfftct can result in the negative
..I.II,U(., lrom bad music. Tllr possil,lc significance of this finding to
1111. l11111ian
kingdom is evident. ancl not a little concerning.
S

Ir l g I ,,,I

111

111

M I ISIC,, MIND AND EMOTION

t ~ c ~ . r l ;tnd open to practic;il usage are music's psychologic;~l
I I ~ I ~ ~ I ~ + I I Cthat
. C . ~ the art has bccn applied throughout the ages in r ~rtlrl
1 1 ) I ) I - I I I ~ : ,11)0utemotional and mental effects. From the earlicst tin1c.5,
Ii\lic-r~ricm,harvesters and other workers have Sung in uni.;c)ri I I I
I ~l'drrI( inspire themselves to work at an optimum c;~p:~c.ir
y . W ill1
~ h colr~illg
r
of the radio, we might note, this basic pr;~cricI. , l i t 1 1 i o r
tr.,l.;r*. 11111 was simply adjusted: scientific rc.\c.;~r-c,lrc.r~.
11.1vc.
tl~~~t~ovrrv<l
111,1t melodious, cheery music on thr f:~ctt b1.v f It 11 I ) c l o . . r
I , ~ t rivir
~ l y ~ ~.o~~sidcrably.
~ ~
\I,

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

l 40

Paradoxically, one form of music which has long been used to

practical effect has the dual result of inspiring one group of ~ e o p l e
whilst striking fcar into another. This is martial music, used since the
dawn of history with often dcvastating results on the battiefield. So
efficacious have bands of drummers. trumpeters, and such like
proved t o be in warfare that the defeated opponcnts, recognizing
that the victors' martial music played a large role in defeating them,
have often adopted an identical o r similar music for themselves even though the particular form and style of music has often been
quite alien tn their own cultural background! T o refer to one such
instance, the early Crusaders, having been defeated by the Saracens,
adopted the arabic martial tones for themselves, with the rcsult that
victories once more came their way. I n our o w n day, sincc warfare
itself has altered in form, there n o longer exists a role for battlefield
musicians; but the expanded usage of patriotic and inspiring songs
of freedom and honour could still prove t o be of great benefit t o the
sometimes demoralized o r apathetic forces of the Western AUiancc.
billeted on the European Front or in America.
Thc psychologicrtl influcnccs o f music are almost infinitely varied.
In particular, man has al w:iys turncd t o the bcauty of good music as
a source of balm and joyous uplift. Shakcspcare knew that good
music :

..

. can minister to minds diseased,

Pluck from thc mcniory a rootcd sorrow,
Raze out the written troubles of the brain,
And w ~ t hits swect, oblivious ~ n t i d o t c ,
Cleanse thc full bosom of all Ferilous stuff
Which wClgh.; llpon the heart.
W h o can cIoi1l71 that music influences our emotions? It is surely true
that music is only listened t o in the first place bccausc it makes usfeel
something. Rut now this is very interesting, for if music gives us
feelings, then tlic\c fcdings - of uplift, joy, cncrgy. melancholy.
violence, sensu:tlity, c;~lm,devotion, and so forth - can certainly be
said t o be Pxprrienci~r.And thc expericnccs which we have in life are a
vitally important factr~ri l l ihc moulding of our ch,ir,icter.
Psychologists have disvotcd a great deal of study into discovering
just what it is that detcrrnines our character - how intelligent we
are, what our particular skills are. whether we are civilized in our
behaviour or rebellious and destructive, and so on. N o t a single
serious psychological project or expcriment on this topic has failed

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

147

I , G I lll<.ludethat the experiences of lifc pl;iy ;in cxtrcmc.l important

I ~ J I~ .I the
I
shaping of charactcr.
'I'wo factors are concerned with the f o r m ; ~ t i ~(11
) n c t r l c . ' \ c.Ii:~r;~ctcr.
111,. first is cxpcrience, which can aIso hc c,;~llrtlI~.;~I,II~II!; i n ~ I i c
~ , , I I I (sense
. ~ I of the w o r d ; the second f:zctor con.;i\l\ r t i I I I ( , i~llliitc
r 1 0 Ije
I r , 1 1 1 , with which we are born. and which pL
IOI.!, is
, ~ ~ . c l r . ic;llly
l
inherited. It is agreed that ~ ; I L . I
i r11.i.11lc1~
important. All that psychologic~st l o 1 1 t l 1 ;I,~I.(.(.
1111011 ;ISC
I 11,.caact percentages t o which each f;ir.lor pl:~ysits I).WI i l l I I I V Ii)r
I I I . I I ~ I I I of
~ the total character. I n the casc oI' onc- ; I ~ ~ ~ I I . I ~. . II I~. II I ; I ~ . I I . ~
I I , 1 1 1 , that of one's IQ, psychological s~t~tlic.t
II,II,(.III,II, ; l l c * c l III;II
slwric.nce accounts for a good proportion 111' c ) \ i r i l l 1 cllil:c.nct..
I u . ~ c ~ what
r l ~ proportion the studies havc :trriv~.rl; I [ I I ; I ~ ~ l t . l ) ( . ~ l ~ l c ' t l
I I , I I I I I factors such as the type of data analysccl. Howcvc.~.,
c*.;~i~n;llc*s
I t 11 11ir extent t o which environment determines I Q
0111 l 3
1 1 I 5 5 per cent.j8 I t would be reasonable enough to :I
)m this
I I I , I I the actual proportion involved is roughly one t
:o r l ~ r r
I W I I thirds is the result of heredity and other innate f;icrors.
'I'hca logical sequence of connections which w e have dcvcloprd i5
1 1 1 1 1 % : music is an experience; experience moulds about a third of' ~ \ I I .
I I I I . I I character, judging from psychological studies; therefore s o ~ ~ l c *
1~~11~1ictn
of this proportion of our character traits is the result of the
1111l\icwe hear. W e find oursclves spanning several thousands o f
VI..II.~,
and standing hand-in-hand with Confucius! Music mottlds
, l~,~rliiter,
I{;tsically, it still all boils d o w n to As in music, so in life,
\Y~rlcningthis aphorism, w e find that all psychologists d o indeed
.,!:It.c that A.r in EXPERIENCE, so in Life. Are the parcnts
I I I I I - I , ~in~ ~art?
~ ~ Then the child too might be expected to become
I ~ ~ ~ c - r r sin
t e dart. Are the fricncls rowdy? Then the child too might
I 1.1111 I o become more rowdy. Docs rhc child watch proudly strutting
I 11 1,. nlusicians o n the screen i TfIcn hc to o may proudly strut. In
1r111v ;iftm study, children h ; ~ v chc*cn found t o copy adult behaviour
-- ~elevision.For example.
irl114
11 rlley have seen eitlicr livc.. u r "11
I ! . , I I I ~.I I Iand
I Huston conducr cd an experiment in which children
~ 1 - I . I Illvided into t w o groups. Each group was able t o sec an : ~ ~ l r ~ l r
1111.o~gh
a variety of t~nusualand striking actions wliilc I I I ~
I I I ~ ~ I~licmselves
I~.TI
wcrc busy with a discrimination prol>lt.ni. tl;1~11
/:I#~ I I ~01'I children was able to see a different set of acrii)ll.; I q I hr
I I I ( I , , I ~;1~1~1lts;
. I I ~ the adult might talk t o himself o r knot li ;I >nl;~ll
I I I I ) I I , . I c11111 off a box. Later, the children of each gr.ot~pwc.~,c.s1-c.n 1 0
I I I I I I . I I I . 1111. I j ; ~ r t i c ~ lactions
ar
they had been ahlc t o oI~.;c.r\~r..'"'
1

! l , ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ! :
q

4X

l
l
l

I
1

I
I

11
1
Ill

il
I

MUSIC. MAN AND SOCIETY

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

These were children of the same age as those who, in millions of

homes in Britain, each week watch Top of the Pops on television.
Not having seen this programme for many years, I happened to
switch on a television set recently - and witnessed what this
programme and its music have become. Near-naked men and
women danced sensuously in the midst of an occult
which
had been drawn on the floor. The men wore animal masks with
antlers and horns. The music and its lyrics (as far as these could be
discerned) were complementary in their lustfulness and violence.
Onc almost wishes that one did not know of studies such as those of
Bandura and Huston . . .
In denying the fact that music and the behaviour of musicians
tend to shape people's character and behaviour, the materialist
musicians are by implication attempting to refute the entire body of
carefully documented psychological research conducted and
established over the last several dccades by hundrcds of responsible
researchers. Not only music, but all forms of experience mould the
way in which we think and bchavc. To t;~kc.the example of television, which in modern tinies has also c0111r I 0 llold a powerful sway
over society: according to the N;ction;il Vic wcrs' and Listeners'
Association of Grcat Britain, thcrc I l o w rais~ n o less than six
hundred pieces of scientific study which h;~v
strated that
there is a link between televised and social violr
Experiences aff'cct our charactrr throughour our rlvcs, but their
influence is particularly strong during childhood ; i r l t l adolescence,
when the personality is still taking shape and is niorc. rn;~lleable.Not
for nothing is schooling conducted during thesc yr,lrs. Music too,
then, can be expected to be particularly powcsfill in r llr nioulding of
character during childhood and the teenage years.
I

MUSIC AS AN ENCODER
The strength of music's effect upon man can l>(. inferred from
detailed studies conducted by psychologists into 111~-c'ffects of other
environmental factors which influence man. Lanhql;~gcis one such
environmental factor, and one particularly similar t o music in that it
also involves sound, pitch and rhythm. Thcrr. ;lrc unmistakable
indications that one's native language does mould cl~aracterand the
way in which we perceive the world around us. Kcsearchers have
discovcred that when a society does not possess ;I word for something, that something frequcntly becomes incapable of being conceived of or identified by them. Some African trihcs do not contain
within their language the words for certain colours; hence they

149

.1111iot
distinguish those colours even though their eyes nrc perfectly

1111l.rr1a1.
On the other hand, some societirs, possrssing tcrrns not

lwrscnt in our own language, are thereby enablcd co distinguish that

which we could not hope to. Since their snowy world iz :tlnlost
r-~~tirely
made up visually of white and light-grey, Eskimos possess
tlozrns of names for dozens of minutely different shades nf grey to
whitc. These shades all look about the same to us, even though OIII.
rycs are as good as the Eskimos'. I n having a word for cach sliattr,
1111. Eskimos are able to specifically conceptualize, rcfcr t o ,
~,t.rncmber,and hence perceive and recognize them. Elsewhere, tlic
I Innu60 peoples have no problem whatsoever in distinguishing
llrtween ninety-two varieties of rice, since they have names for each
I 11' the ninety-two varieties."
I)sychologists call the ability of a referential word to enhance
I I I ; I ~ ' Sperceptual and conceptual abilities codabiltg. The words of a
1.111guage
clarify and encode concepts and phenomena for our minds
. I I I ~ memories. The process is very marked during childhood, the
I I~ild'sintellectual abil.ities increasing in close accordance with his or
I~cr mastery of language. It is as though words provide the
\l>ccifically-shapedchalices into which our otherwise vague and fluid
~lloughtscan be poured.
It seems highly likely that different W e s of mustc, tn giving to us
rvrrious kinds of emotional experiences - romantic love, lust, religious
/;rlings, patriotic fervour, rebellion, etc. - also encode such feelings and
d)rir various hues. A style of music which we have never before
Ilcxrd, and now hear for the first time, may open our minds t o an
entirely novel feeling or way of looking at the world. A stirring.
triotic tic song during wartime can encode, unify and intensify the
~lloughtsof an entire nation. And in combining words with music,
I I I ; I I ~ concepts
~
can be encodcd ;IS ncver before. The word 'Lord'
I I I . I ~ not move or mean anything t o thc non-religious person, but in
11c:lring it sung in paeons oF rising, fugal praise he can realize and
It-rl its power and glory for thr first timc.
Music has often encoded cntirc movements of human life whit l 1
wc.11. virtually non-existcnt rtntil the musical referent madfa i 1 5
.~lyw..~r.tnce.
The Beatln' early singles began the creation of ;In canti1.c'
t~~l~-c.ulture
by encoding it in music. A few years later, tllr ;III)IIIII
,$:I I'rlrper did the same again.
Ic 11 not possible that music, like language, gives os ;I I'I-:III~~.WI)I
li
r t i c.111t trional experiences and mental concepts whicl~I c1111 I 1 + o l ~ . ~ l i ( .
IIOW wc. view the world? It is not only possihlc, 1>11r i t II.I*. 1 0 111r.
.IW! A r ~ i l it may well be that music, likr 01 1 1 1 ~ 1 I)I.I, . I . I I I I I , I ~
U

I 10

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

t-xl)cricnccs,can affect us in exceedingly specific ways, moulding our

way of thought in direct relation t o the specific elements of the
music.
In his book. Music, Its Secret Influence Throughout the Ages, Cyril
Scott stated his belief that the music of each great composer of the
past played a vital role in very specifically altering the minds and
hearts of the people of the day, and thus paving the way for civilization as we know it today.' For example, Handel was born into a
period during which morality and piety in England were at a low
ebb. Yet the effects of Handel's music, and especially his devotional
works, according to Scott inspired a reawakening of true religious
feeling, while Handel's very formal style brought about the formalism, and even over-formalism, of the Victorian era.
Scott cites two typical tributes to the awe and reverence which
Handel's Messiah invokes. Thc first is from the Qudrterb Review,
which runs :

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

~~l)\crve
that he had a strong predilection fr~rthc repetition of
u.inglc chords, for two or more bar phrases, and for sequences,- viz.:
I IIC. rciteration of a phrase in a different position or on a diffcrcnt
tlcgrce of the scale. Thus, apart from its emotional contcnt,
I l;~ndel's music was pre-eminently formal in chnr;tctcr, consecl~tcntlyit was formal in effect. If, however, we conibinc its
1.111otionalqualities with its formalism, and to repetition ;ind
~nusicalimitativeness - for sequence is but imitativeness - add
,i:r:tndeur, the net result is the glorification of repetition and
inlitativeness; and if we translate all this from the planc of music
to that of human conduct, we get love of outward ceremony and
.~~lhcrence
to convention.

M USIC AS A COMMUNICATOR AND MULTIPLIER OF

Y'I'ATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS
philosophers - and even the occasional musician - havc
.ltc.gorically denied that music contains any meaning whatsoever,
~lr.~.l;tring
its sounds to be purely abstract. Yet the emotional content
01 n~iwicseems so obvious to most of us that we simply accept its
c.xist.cnce a priori. There is surely no doubt that music actually
t)~~vcys
very real and sometimes vcry specific emotional statcs from
1111. musician or composer to thc listencr. For this reason, thinkers
II,I\TC* from time t o time postulated that music is a form of language.
\'(.I in fact music is both less, and more, than any language of
words. Words are highly specific: it would be difficult to com11111r1icate
in pure tone form that, 'Jack callcd: he will mect you at
{:I.Tpm by the bridge on thc A47. Rring your report.' But on the
rlrllcr hand, while words n1;1~bc specific on the mental level, they
11.11~1
to be little more than
of information. Though some
t.l~~otion
is contained in all spokc~nwords, words nevertheless tend
11, l,(. mere symbols of reality; o n l y symbols, what is more, of real
I I I I I V I . icelings. Music, howcvcr. conveys the very emotional essencc
111 ~c..tlit~
behind the information. 'Iic> listen t o Handcl's Messiah is
t l t , r 10 &bate intellectually ;thou1 rcligion; it is to feel and bcconlt.
1 1 r l r . wit11 that surging inncr f1;tnlc of devotion. In this sensc, music i ~ ;
1 1 1 1 11-1.
1l1.1na language. It is thr language of languages. I t can h(. ...lit1
111:11 111' 311 the arts, there is none other that more faithfully cclllrrc.\l.t
I 111. ~ I I I Istate
~ . I .of the artist; none other that more powrri;;llv Illllvr.i.
.111tl 11.111gesthe
consciousness.
Y 1.1i t music can so move and transform thc inncr I'I.~.I~II!~~,
. I I I L I I 11(I I I I I C I - I~c.l~:~viour
of man, what exactly is it t h : ~( I~~ ~ I V I I I I I I I\ PI ~~ I . I I
1.110 I ;tny !:ivc.n piece of music has upon prcq~l~.i
\2'11,11.1 1 1 1 1 1 , . I 1 1 1 . 1 1
\IBIIIC

W e feel, on returning from 11c;lring the Messiah, as if we had

shaken off some of our dirt .tnrl dross, as if the world were not so
much with us; our hcarts ,trc clcvated, and yet subdued, as if the
glow of some action, or the grace of some noble principle, had
passed over us. WC arc conscious of having indulged in an
enthusiasm which cannot lead us astray, of t a ~ t i n ga pleasure
which is not of the forbidden tree, for it is the only one which is
distinctly promised to be translated with us from earth to heaven.
The second q ~ ~ o t ; ~ t iiso nfrom D r Gregory's biography of the Rev
Robert HRU,;incl reads:
M r Hall was present in TYestminster Abbey at Handel's commemoration. Thc King, George 111, and his family were there in
attendance. A t onc part of the performancc of t11c Messiah (the
Hallelujah chori~s)the King stood up, a sign:tl for the whole
audience to rivc; IIC was shedding tears. Nothing, said Robert
Hall, had cvcr ;~ffc.ctc.Jhim more strongly; it sccrncd like a great
act of national asscni to the fundamental truths o f rcligion.
Concerning Handel's style, Scott himself writes regarding what he
sees as having been its subsequent effect upon Enslish society with
the coming of the Victorian era:
Those who have closely exntnined Handcl's technique will

ljl

conveyors

15,'

'II'HE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

. I I Iy.A,
~ ~ i h rhc origin of the emotional effects of music?
Is i t 11ot the state of consciousness of the musician? Surely the
Iowcsi common denominator which determines the precise nature of
;tny nii~sicalwork is the mental and emotional state of thc composer
and/or performer. It Is the essence of thls stale which eizters into us,

rending to mould and shape our olov cotzscioz4stzess in10 conformig with
itself: Through music, portions of the consciousness of the musician
become assimilated by the audience. T o spcll it out so bluntly is
almost too shocking. Yet if W C accept that music does fulfil such a
function, transferring elements of the consciousness of the musician
into the listener. then the moral implications for the use and misuse
of the tonal arts can no longer bc dcnied.
W e have secn that thinkers down through the agcs have warned
of thc social dangers attached t o the misuse of tonal art. But there is
also the positive sidc. W h e n used correctly, music is perhaps unequalled in its power t o instil in man the 17c;tuty of true morality and
those higher, inspired purposes fc)r wliicl1 o i ~ rli\ics are intended.
Thomas Fielden, thc n1usici;~n;lntl wrircr, 1'(.1t tllis most strongly. H e
askcd :
Which is t o bc r~scfcr~~c.cl?
'I'll(, ii11!:o , 1 1 1 t l I I I C \ l ~ o i ~ t i n geasily
,
.
.
excited Philisti
oltl ~II,II
.; and thinks is
rious, humble
the criterion fr
student, sittin?
;ic.l~ieveskill,
perhaps himsctlf t o l)ccornc a ma,stcr, ancl i l l . I I I ~ c.;~sct o have a
be reached
dwelling on I-';~rrlassus,whose lowcst slopes C.,IIII.IOI
without cl'fi)rt i W h o shall deny that character is c~~!;cmdcred,that
exa1t;ition ;ind triumph, as well as the tenclcr rl~in!:\ of the spirit,
.
has
can rc;~chgreater heights, through this a r t 01 I I I I I S ~ Cwhich
always inspired nicn to achievcmenr, ancl L . ~ ~ . ~ , ~ ~ g thcir
rl~cned
minds t o finc and noble thinking?30

MOTIVES FOR MUSIC

For argument's s;tkc we have tendcd t o assumr 111116,
I-;lr in this book
that hedonistic ;irtists p r f o r m their anarchistic n1115icbecause they
d o not believe that music influences people. Ant1 yrt the morc one
looks into the subject, tllc morc it is discovered ~ I I . I Ieven the perform e n of violent contcn1por;Lry music do believe I l l ; c t their music has
an effcct o n their listeners. That is, they d o not perform such music
out of the belief that it is harniless, but out of .I deliberate desirc
which in former days w n ~ l l donly have been called evil.
T h e fact is that all types of musicians, good and bad, tend t o be

MUSIC. M A N ,

;iwareof the comrn~~ni~.;crivc

1 I I )II;II ,111. ' I ' l ~ r o u ~this
h
~ r ~ ~ r ~ ~ u n i cpowcr,
a t i v e thc cn~ori o ~ l . i l.,I.II
1 01
I , I I ~ *,111 i51 (.;(l1 Ilc transill i ~ r . i t ~ ; I I oI f~ all
Ir.l.rrcl 10 a hundred, or even t o [ c a l l 1 1 1 i 1 l i o 1 1 ,I
! : I . I ~ I . ~ Shave thereby seldom I-)c.c~i
ignor:~n~
/;IS[ l
c.nl~;cnc.ccl
. ~ l ~ i lto
i t direct
~
the minds ;inJ ; I I ~ , I ~01I , <I I ,I ~ I I . I I I ( - I I I I I ~ , , 11;is1)cc-11
I II(. prime motive behind rhcir ; I I , I . ' I ' l l ( % ~ . ~ ~ l ) i c I. c I )I I I I C N I O I ~ O ( ~ o
I f
~ l ~ ~ ~ s i cisi aone
n s which should not II(. iy,~~orc.tl.
A most revealing statement is ncrril)~~rc.tl
1 1 ) M icdc I;~~:l;r'r.\l)okrn
(Illring the 1 9 6 0 s . A t that time, n
c c.rt;iin that this lead singer of thc
long-haired, thick-lipped, thick-hi
1111, ,111~1
1,c.rncmberfrom the time). As I write, it i h now I wi.nly yc..~r.~
1I1c dust has settled, so t o speak. The hair is still rl~c~.c.,
. I I I ~111~.
~
r l ~ i cI<
lips. But it is doubtful that Mick Jaggcr ever w.1.; . t l l 111.11 111it.kI~caded,or quite such a layabout. A former studcnr 01 rhc. I .onclon
School of Economics, Jagger, along with his group 211d;ill 111c. o111(.1,
rock bands, has in his way worked extremely hard ;ct t l ~ cl)rolilc.r,~~
ing of his music, message and lifestyle. In the '6Os, while ;III I 11(.t l ~ l \ r
was still up in the air, an awful lot was spoken and W rittcn ;LIN ~ I I II IIC
music of rock artists, but almost nothing about thcir m'otivcs.
- /( TL LI I C rdollill!;
Obviously money was and still is one prime motivc.
Stones' 1 9 8 1 tour, carefully planned by Jagger to be a nionryspinner, gathered in forty million US dollars, breaking all previous
rccords for such a tour.) But there was, and is, another motivc.
Jagger was the one who, on thcit occasion during the '6Os, spelled it
out absolutely clearly. Said I I C : ' W e are moving after the minds, and
so are most of the new proup.;.'
mspect, the Stones had succeeded
M a n y would argue tli
that decade was out.
to a remarkable degree c\
as i~lsoconfided in an interview:
T h e rock star, David (
I ~ I I ~ I ~
I

I figurcd the only thing I O t l o hr,is t o swlpe thelr klds I stlll thlnk
IL'S the only thing CO (10
Ily \.lying that, I'm not tallung ,~bour
~ ~ ~ : changlng their value sy5tcnl\,
L~cinap~lng,
I'm just t ; l l l < ~,iI)out
which removes them f r r ) 1l1c11
~~~
world very effectively ' '
Sonlc~i~ilesthe effects 0 1 rock upon the audience h ~ ~ vIrl-11
c
g hardly been u n k n o w ~;I[~ I O C I<
in~mrcliate.Violence and ~ . i o ~ i nhave
concerts, but according ro John Phillips of the group, LII(.M o ~ ~ ~ ~ . ~ : ,
and the Papas, 'by carrfully controlling the sequence ol' I I I ~ I I I I I I ~ '
;my rock group can create audience hysteri;l c o n ~ c i o ~ ~. I I\I lL I~
deliberately. 'IVc know how t o do it,' he s ; ~ i d 'Anyl)t
.
) c l k110w6,

I \.I

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

IIOW to d o it.' And according t o the Saturday Evening Post of 2 5

March, 1967. M r Phillips and his colleagues were not at all
satisfied t o allow his words t o rest unproven. Prior t o a concert they
were to perform in Phoenix, Arizona, they decided to put their
theory t o the test. And during the concert, by making use of a
certain combination of rhythms, they actually did create a riot
among the audience.
T h e Rolling Stones were the protagonists in a similar story.
When. during the 1969 Altamont rock festival, they performed the
song, Sympathy for the Devil, the Hell's Angels 'bodyguards' went
on a rampage, attacking the audience with such violence that people
were severely injured and even killed. Afterwards, Mick Jagger did
not seem too concerned about the incident. H e and the other group
members even refuscd to attend court in order to identify the
murderer or murderers who - prrhaps bccause of this - went free.
However, one thing Mick Jaggcr did havc t o say: 'Something like
that happens every time I play that song.'
Music for 'moving after the minds'; music for the instigation of
mass violence
The motives for music were not always so. Hence: Beethoven,
submerged in the bliss of reverence of G o d , sacrificing his entire life
t o the mission of transferring such states of being abrvad throughout
the world. In the margin of the manuscript of his Mirsa Solemnis he
penned: 'From rlic heart, nlay it reach other hearts.'
Thus: the tc~wcrilig figure of Wagner, of whom Paul Henry
L i n g has writtcn :

...

Never sincc Orpheus has there been a musician whose music

affected so vit;tlly the life ;tnd art of generations
Waglier
himsclf w;~ntcdt o be more than a great musician; the new music
hr crca~cll w;ls for him merely the path t o the con~plete
r e o r g a n i z : ~ ~ ioofl ~
life in his own spirit.''

...

Therefore: Sihelil~u.whose innate national pride rcrnained undaunted by the occupation of his native Finland by the Russians, and
w h o therefore ought t o capture and fan the fl:tmes of national
freedom through his magnificent work, Ftnlrr?zdia. T h e piece
succeeded so instantly and
.ably in its task that the occupying forces were compelled i
:ly t o ban it.
J. S. Bach wrote that hc LcJlllrosedfor thc spiritual uplifting of
man, and to the glory of Grid. Franz Lehar during his final days.
stated: 'I wanted to conquer people's hearts, and if I havc

115

c-cclcd, I know I have not lived it1 vain.' And in Monteverdi's

'The end of all good music is t o affect thc soul.'
110 musicians affect those who listen t-o tlieir nlusici Is niusic a
~ ~ l ~ . ~ l for
i o r ithe
i communication and multiplic;~tionof states of conIIIIISII~SS?
If our answer be yes, then w e must thcrcf.orc ; ~ l s oal'firni
I l l . ~ t lnorality in music matters. The morality of thr mrrsiricln m:ll I curs.
I , vc-n quite apart from such blatent examples as thnsc ()1'rc )cl<m~lsic
1~~~ ~ t c dabove, music must always have a moral effcct. Eit h c ~ovrrt
l y,
I
in subtle ways which are communicated from subconscii~l~\
t o
~.~~l)conscious.
musicians always express through their pcrforrn;~t~c,c*s
rul~:~tever
level of psychological harmony o r inharmnny thcy 11;lvc.
rvirhin themselves. This is inevitable. Even the slightest inner II;II~,I:1 1 1 ) n~anifestingthrough the slightest shake of the performing li;~ntl
I 11. t hrough the minutest weakness in composition becomes registi~rrll
I I I M )l1 our own ~i~bconscious
as w e listen. N o matter h o w onc might
I I-y, it is impossible not t o express in one's music the reality of one's
llwn inner state of being, even if only in subtle ways. This afCccis
others, the attainment or weaknesses of the performer or composer
~ c ~ ~ dtionbecome
g
the attainment or weakness of the hearers. Music
~llc-reforehas influences as varied a n d diverse as the minds of the
~rlltsicians themselves. As D r H o w a r d Hanson, Director of thc
Il;~stman School of Music at the University of Rochester, has
.,Ixted :
111

w l lvtlu.

b3t

11-

Music can be soothing or invigorating, ennobling o r vulgarizing,

philosophical o r orgiastic. I t has powers of evil as well as for

MUSIC THERAPY: THE UNIVERSAL CURE?

I{c.rnovc thc magnet from bcnc;~th;I shcct of paper, and iron filings,
papclr, become scattered 21nd
,l. they had brcn placed on tc)p ol' LIIC
'
tllaotic. losing the pattern i ~ ~ 5rd
~ p oupor
' I them by magnetism.
. )cl the f o:mer
I<c.turnthe magnet beneath ~ I I ( * I I I ;LI
~ pattern is renewccl.
I ,ikcwise was music in ancicn~r imc:, Lu c ~ l c v c cto
l be able t o rcncw t lic
clivinc harmony and rhythm 01' man's body, emotions and mind. 1\11
l;)rms of sickness and disc;tsc, mental o r physical, were repnrtlrcl . I # ,
I ) c i ~ ~ultimately
g
musical prl~blcms.T h e sick man had lost l ~ i sI I I I I ~ I
Il;crlnc~ny;he had allowcd dissonance t o enter the symphony 111 111,.
Iwinp. H e was n o longcr in tune with the univcrsc ;1n1l
I.lrvs.
'I'hcrefore outward, auctible music was used in ordcr t o I.~..I~I!:II 111.111
with Universal Ssound.
I'rimitivc soci eties ofte n placed a greater c.nlpli;~\i\
111.1!:ic.ll
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'1'1 11; SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

\l1

I I l l w f ~ ~ l l y I~owcvcr,
.
music therapy will grow in grass-roots popI I I . I I I I y I I rexson
~
of its sheer efficacy, which needs to be demonl

I . I I r.11 I,y greater numbers of experienced modern-day practitioners.

A*. n111sictherapist Jean Maas has said :

Music is the greatest power I have ever experienced. I doubt if

anything else equals its power to act upon the human organism.
Long ago, Novalis stated that every illness is a musical problem.

Thus far, modern experience has not proved him wrong. In the
literature of music therapy, reports can be found of success t o a lesser
or greater degree in the treatment of hysteria, depression, anxiety,
nervousness, worry and fears, tension, insomnia, high blood
pressure, headaches, asthma, brain damage, cancer tendency, heart
weakness, Parkinson's disease, tuberculosis, and a widc-ranging host
of other mental and p h j
nnits. E v r n thc most unlikely
1 I)y musi C'S c11r;ltilf e effects. The
problems have been helped
.
behavioural scientist Johanncb ~11c.1ltk;cnreyr)rrcu1 - 1uiat
debilitated
youngsters and the mentnlly rct;~rclrdp;~ssquict [lights when taperecorded cradle songs ;II-(* I ~ l ; ~ y r i I>rcll . wrrr i11g decreasing in
incidence by no less tli;~nlwc~-tllir~l.;
,Incl .;lcrpillg I>ills not being
found necessary any niorc..I n
Recently thcrc h;~vcI~rrlimajor ;~clvnncr..;i11 111ruse of musical
instruments to hclp the hanclic;tpped. O n the t';~c(.01 i t , 111ostinstruments would sec111 t o I,c hcyond the ability of' rh(. .irvcrely handicapped to play, hut with imagination this has I I I 11 I,~*c ~ v r dtoo vast
a problem. Instr~~mcnts
can be adapted t o the inrlivitl~~;~l
nccds of the
handicapped pcrforrner; or else, special glovcc or rc.~c.ntion straps
can be used to hclp the person hold or perfonn 1111. In\crument. A
guitarist with no right arm with which to pl11ck 1111, strings might
learn, for ~ n s t a ~ ~to
c cplay
,
the guitar with an :~tt:~cll~~~c.nt
connected
triany handito his right foot. With such individual adapr:~rio~ls,
capped people havc taken to music with profountl concentration.
The result has bccn that not only have they found I l~rniselveswith a
genuine interest and well developed ability, but r l i , ~the
~ mental and
physical effort necessary in order t o learn to pl;ly. 11.1ppily engaged
in for lung hours, has proved exceptionally effective in the development of sensory-motor co-ordination, helping rlic disabled to
move. '9,60,61
Is music a universal curative agent? On the one hand, the
practical mind must concede that in cases of the worst kinds of
physical ailment, when these arc already fully manifested, more

MUSIC, MAN ANTI SOCIETY

immediate and physical forms of'trc;ttmrnt ;trc ncrt.ss;try. I3ut it may

well be that a more gener;ilizrrl tlsr 01' 111c. c.t~r;lrivcpowc.r\ o i sc~r~ncl
woidd prevent such illncsscs f'rc~ni ; ~ l j l ) c . : ~ l . i r ~ ! : in rIi(. l i ~ , . ; ~ l ) l ; ~ ~ r ,
Indeed, what makes music thcr;cpy p;lt.~ic-r~l;lrly
,~~rr.lc,~ivci*, r III. l',~r.t
that it heals the cause bchintl rlisca;~\(*,
I . : I I ~ I ~ . I -r l r . i l ~ I I I ~ . I , I . I ~L , I I J ) J ) I ( - s : ; ~ I I ~ :
the symptoms as do most f'or111~
1 1 1 I I I I I I ~ ( ~ I , I I I I ~ , I ~ III (I ; I I 1 1 ~ , I III I O I I I .
According to all the evii1rnt.c. ~>rc.v.nr
r.(l l ) v I . ~ ) I I I . I I I J > I $1 IT-^ I I I I I \ ~ L ,
therapy, good music dors inrlrctl ;117171.,11. 1 1 1 11.11 I I ~ I I I I I ~ I11i.111"~
*
III+~II):,
bringing him back into morc I I ~ ; I I I I I ~I ~ , I I I . I , I I ~ T 1 1 1 I I I I I I I ~ : I I I , I I - ~ ~ ~ I I ! :
and action, even as was claimrtl 131, I I I I - wl\c. I I I . I I I I I I ~ I I I Iy \\'v II.IV(.
said that the worst kinds of physic;~l; l i l n ~ c - ~
W l~~I .I . III ~I I - . ~ . . I I I . . I ~ I I + . I I ~ ~
fully manifested, require physical rrc;tl mc.nr : v c . 1 will I I I I 1.1, r I ,111 * * . I v.
ultimately, what the power of aco~~stics
~ i i i ~ : I IlI ~
I 11 . I { 1 I I I ~ I ~ ~ I I * :'
. I I 11
may well be that the power of sound. oncc ;I I 1 r . t l l r l *.I I I - I I ~1. I I I 1 1 1 1 .
past, is yet to be a major science of the futurc.

MUSIC AND THE STRUCTURE OF SOCIETY

Having established that music exerts a dcfinitc i111luc.n~
c. 1 1 1 r t 111 t11.1 1 1
as an individual, the question of whether or not mu.
,.I ,I 11.1 V
as a whole is mcrcly one of extrapolation. The indiv
l r . 11.1..l1
component of society. All civilizations are houses cc
I 1 1111 1 11
the bricks that are people. If the characters of a sizeablr prt 1 1 7 o r - I 11 111
of the individuals within a society become changcd, tlrc.11 111.11
society will definitely undergo a degree of similar changes.
The evidence strongly suggests that music's effect upon 111r.
individual is similar t o that of other perceptual/learning expcricnr~rs
such as the acquisition of languapc. As we have already noted, thrrc
exist definite similarities l ~ r t w c ~the
n influences of language ;~ntl
music upon society. For ex;~rnplr.170th act as encoders of intellecttr;~l
s emotional feelin~s.:I nd witho ut the key word or piccc
concel~ t or
r
orr music, it is possible for concrprs anal reelings
to be unknown ;tnd
alien to entire societies. Onr. human faculty which secms 1-0Ire.
affccted by both languagr ;EIILI rlrusic is that of, intriguingly rncwj:l I ,
the awarness and perception 01' time. Regarding lanpuagr, sot i.11
; have noted a number of ins1.111(
r+t
psycllc~logistsand anthrt
Lrts of thc:. world who hnvc I c n ' I I I
of p r imitive
~
peoples in 1
no ter nis by which to ref
passage o f time - no wortls 511111 I<.
'hours'. 'months', ' y e s t c r ~ l ; or
~ ~'soon'.
'
O n e rcsult of this i. I 11.11 I 1 1 1 ' ~
are unable t o handle thr concepts of past and f i ~ t ~ ~ r(cI I.I.. I I ~ I I . 1 1 1
clearly conceptualize or discuss the passing of tinic, IIII.)~ l 1 v 1 . 111 .I
vague kind of eternal now, and the structure of tlwir c , ~ ~11.1( y ,11111 11..
activities reflects little or no sense of progrrus5, 01. r - v r . ~ 1~1 1 I 11,
Cvents.

I00

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

l'his close relationship between language and the conceptualiza-

ion of time is closely paralleled in the relationship between people's

music and their conceptualization of time. In the modern Western
world the movement and rhythm of most music is very clearly
thought out, written down and adhered to. Musical works may be
consciously divided into definite movements ; I I I L ~scctions. There is a
sense of progrcss from beginning to cnd. I,ikcwisc w c grapple with
time in very precise, intellectual terms. I>;iyx ;Ire divided into hours
and minutes. The time of day, date, nionlll ;incl year of many
historical events are exactly recorded. T h r lu1t11~.
et;iys and weeks of
our lives are often well planned out i t 1 .lclv;~ncr.\VC are strongly
Moreover,
aware of each day's progression frolir t ~ ~ o t . l ~10i n 11i~ht.
~:
w e tend t o live with the feeling t l l ; ~O~I I I I i v n ,II.(-taking us some;I p a l .
where; with thc sense of progress o v c . ~I i111r~ow;~l-cls
All this is not necessarily tlic c.;lscbi l l 111~.I I I I I \ I ( . .IIICI t11c intellectual
~ L 1 1 0 11ot write their
framework of other cultures. n ; l l i ~ ~ rI *I IsI ~I ~ ~i;1115
I O ;t rc-pertoire of
music down, and therefore ( l t r I I O I I l j : ~ t l l y .~cIllc.r*c.
C
(t11ough within
inviolable classics. Rr~thcr,1111-irIov(. r c V I I I I ~ I I,viw
certain definite rulcs).
Building upon this, ( ~ : l ~ ~ . i \ l o ~Stll;lll
~ l ~ l '1~1 ..1 ~ ~I car c'nrly 111;idea very
of Rali: that
interesting obscrvatioll ; I ~ I O I I I 1111.1 1 1 1 1 \ i c . I I I ~ I 111r. ~lc.oj~I(.
; I \ W C ;ll.cn ~ , \ r c ~ r w l l l . l ~ ~in
~ ithe
~~gly
the musicians ;ire not e,ot~c.c.l-nc'cl,
West, with thr ii1r;tl ol' Iiro~:rr~\.
since- t l ~ c - i l . V V I - y a)ll~.cl>t
of time
itself is not l i t i c . ; ~ ~11111
. (,i~.e.~~l;lr.
Morrover, ;11ii11 1 1 0 * ~ 1, I I I ~ , ~ I . I ; I I ~ ~ :
This rirc111;11
i t y 01 I ~ I I I Cis rcvc;~lednot only 111 rllr 11111sic
but also
in many ol-rht. ri111;tl>;uid social customs of I?,;lI; .. .
Thc c;~lcncl;lr-.;irlrilarly reflects the circul;~riry 01 111cBalinese
but
. , the
scnsc of time. I t rncasures, not the elapsinl: oI I ~ I I I C
char;lctcristics OS r l ~ cvarious parts of time cyclc~~:'!
Such sin1il;tririca 1)c.l wibcn music patterns ancl 1i1c Ixttterns are
unlikely t o bc wholly duc to the nature of thc C - I I I I I I ~ C ' in general
the other to
dictating the pattel,ns 01' its music. Each must infl~~c.r~c(,
some degree. O n t l ~ conc hand, it would be u n r c ; t I ~ ~to
~ i csuppose
that civilization, as ; I I I environmental factor (;ttiil itlcluding that
civilization's already-cxisting music), does not h;tvc. an influence
upon the course of thc music of the present morncnl. as this music
comes forth. Yet civilization, in influencing music, is itselfaffected by
music. W h a t w e have here is a classic chicken-or-egg situation
(which came first?). I n encoding this o r that world-view, music
must t o some cxtent be merely reacting t o the culture it already finds

16 1

ilsclf within. But having conccclcd lliis point, it niust ;ilso be

.~l'firmedthat, as Cyril Scott indic-;itrcl. ;i sluily .ol' Iiistory clearly
I-c.vcals that changes in nitaic. h;tvc 1c11tlct1to I~rc-c~cilc
outer,
'I~istorical' events. I n other words, n~usic.tloc:s ; ~ l s osyt~~l~olic;illy
I-licode lifestyles a n d ideologies whic,l~c10 rot yrl cxisl in 1 1 1 ~olttcr
lil'c, but which come t o exist due prc.cisc.l I ( : I 11;:; 1.1 ivc. c l l ~ : l l i ty o f
r l ~ art.
c
is
One of the few modern writcrs wlio i l o ( ~1101 (Irl~ytl1;11 11111sic.
i Ior I I I V 41;11>itig
-15 important for the shaping of Socicty ;IS
1 ) I ,I ~ , c - t , ( - ~l),~ )OIL
t
of music is John Shepherd, o n e o f t h c fotu
I+;VL
Sl1rl~I~(.rcl
y
of
M
IISI
c,nlitled Whose Music?A Sociolog
rpn'

Music is .. a n open mode that, through its C'SSUII i i ~ l *,I

l ~I 11t.111r.11
01
nature is singularly suited to reveal the dynamic slrr~c.tt~rir~,t:
social life, a structuring of which the 'material' LII~IIIS
o ~ l l yOII(.
~,;III
aspect. Music is consummatory ... because social ti~c~;~ninp,
arise and only continue t o exist through symbolic cotittiit~nic;~lio~~
originating in consciousness - communication of wliie.li t1111~;it
forms a part.G3
111 the same way that the time-sense of the Balinese seems to 1l;rvr
I w n patterned after the time-structure of their music, John Shephcnl
points to the spatial, temporal and structural similarities between tlic
Western music of different historical periods and the societies of
tliose same periods. Certainly it is true that in medieval plainchant
the individual was submerged in the overall structure of the music.
cvcn as medieval man tended to lack individuality within thc
-.rl.ucture of society. Today, individual expression in music is
l~;tr;~llrled
by individual expression in life.
Are notational and tonal systems also associated with thc
*,I I 11' I lire of society? Shephcrd suggcsts that this is the case, and that
1 1 V l l . ~ l i l encodes the industrial world-view. H e writes that:

;trchitectonicism of tlic ronal structure articulates thc wclrlJ

of industrial man, I'or it is a structure having one crnlr;~l
vic.wp)int (that of the kcy-note) that is the focus o f ;I sin!:lr.,
1111ilic.d
sound-sense i n t ~ o l v i na ~high degree of d i ~ t a n r i n ~ 11
: . is, I I I
c )r 11c.1words, a centre-oriented structure with margins
.
I I is, nioreover, a dialectic correlate of thr s1>;lti ; l l i \ r . l l I I I I I ( . I ~ * Iit.lll;~t~dby tonality
that industrial man, i l l Iwc O I I I I I I , ~ :
~l~c.rc-;~singly
objective and self-conscious, is ;11)1c I ( I *.I .111tI 1 1 . 1 ~ 1i
~llr.

WIIW

..

I,,'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

objectify the passage of time .. B y bringing the corporeal

Ix~lscof music into such contitmal high relief - and thereby
altering and negating its original 'timeless' and hypnotic
characteristics - the rhythmic structure of tonality helps to
maintain industrial man's intense and constant awareness both of
the passage of time, and of his own c o n s ~ i o u s n c s s . ~ ~
.tlitl

Shepherd therefore emerges as one of the few modern thinkers to

suggest in print a n at least partially cre:trivc. role for music.
Elsewhere in even the same book, howrvcr, thia possibility, with its
vast implications, is generally avoided. Virclcn iind Wishart, for
example, interpret Shepherd's line of rr:tsoning ;[S hcing merely that
(and I have placed their key choice of wcrl~l\in italics), 'medieval
;
'tonality
music articulated an idealisation o f it.; s o c i : . ~ ~ 'that,
expressed musically the nationaliscd ;tncl c.cntr;tliscd hierarchy that
was actually emerging througliotlt c ~ c o ~ ~ c r ~~)olitical
~ r i c , and cultural
life'; and that, 'the transforlnation;~lgc-11c.r;ilivc. r~llcsfor tonality
were thus established as a miisic;~lr ~ n . o ) ~ t p , r r r r r )t~or tl~l ~~ emergence
c
of
a new general sense and organis;~ticrn(11 1111.I I I I I I ~ ; I ~world.'62 W h a t
can be seen herc is rhc opposition i l l I > c . c ~ l j l r " \ owl1 lllinds t o the
realization of just how powcrfi~l ;111cI I I I I ~ ) I I I ~ , I I ~111usic
I
is. The
association between structures in niusic. . r ~ l c I , S I ~ I I ~ . I I I ~in~ ' Ssociety
would seem to be undeniable, but whcn i t L 4 ) I I I I ~ . S 1 1 1 111cpersonal
intetpretation of this fact. the tendency is to II(.~.I)IIII.
; I I 11:;tst rather
vague, if not completely reductionistic.
Yet while it may not be difficult for the arnlc.11.1ir.~~llilosopher
to
discount the independent, creative role of music- 111 .~l'l(.c.ti~ig
society,
it can prove impossible for the practical philosopl~r.~.
' i l l 111cfield' to
d o so. And, even more amusingly, when an ; I I . I I11.1ir
I ~ philosopher
becomes suddenly confronted with the real worlcl, 111.is often compelled t o alter his outlook. A good examplc of' wl1.1111;tppenswhen
the materialist philosophy of music comes up .~!!.~instreality is
afforded by the story of music under thc rr,qililr of the Soviet
dictatorship. According to strict dialectical m;lli.l.i.tlisln, man does
not shape civilization, but civilization shapes ni:ln, In the words of
Marx, 'it is not the consciousness of men th;tt tlcrcrmines their
cxistence but, on the contrary, their social existtnc,~tlctermines their
consciousness'. W o r d s which R. F. Skinner wo~rltl11:tvcbeen proud
of. As such a materialist vicwpoint has it, then, men are merely
biological machines which arc programmed by tl~cirenvironment.
Music, as a creation of the consciousness of individuals, should
therefore exactly reflect the structure of socicty, cxcept in sym-

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

bolized form. This was an in1port;inl notion to the Communist

dictators who emerged as victors of' the Octohcr Revolution. Their
concern was t o keep the masses in ordrr, ancl to prcvcnt a n y i o r ~ no f
c,ounter-uprising.Thus, as one ;lsprcr o f t h i ~conrrrn it was nc-ccssary
for them to formulate a definite I-mlicy tow;~r,cl\11ic ;t~.ts,in 01.c1t.1.to
rnsure that the arts did not b e c o ~ ~;I~IcI1rc;11
'
I I ) I 1lr.ir r11li~r:;lii1>.
/\c.~.c IF
ding to dialectical materinlism, Ilowrvl.r, . I ~ Isl~o~rltl
fc,lli~rupoli~ic;tlcconornic events, and therrfi~rc co111t1 111. Iidr Ii,rv I 11 I,c,lir ic';~l
l to 171.
interference. N o influence
8Ii1
i(,;tIpossible, since art (from
economic events (society)
. i t .111(1
die other arts, the Soviet dictators bclicvr~!t l l ; ~ t 1111 t l i l i W lI i ~ ~ ~ i ' t v r ~ t
tion was necessary; that their political and ccc~rir,111it r l l t r v r n - , wl I I I I I I
be sufficient. Initially, therefore, a liberal view tc rw;~l.<l\
I !I(* . I I . I w.1,;
*,
adopted.63
As seems to be the case in so many activities o f S ~ w i r..I ~ ic-~v,
however. this 'liberal' outlook was admittedly sul~jcttI O . I r.(.~.l.~il~
degree of double-talk from the beginning. For e x ; ~ ~ n ~ llr.(.I
. . 11 1 1
acknowledged that 'every artist takes it as his right to crt';ttc- lr-r*c.ly.
i~ccordingto his ideal, whether it is good o r not' yet then conti~ir~c~cl:
But of course we are Communists. W e must not drop otir l1:111iI\
into our laps and allow the chaos t o ferment as it choose.;. W r
must try consciously t o guide this development and mould ;tnd
determine the results.
Trotsky too felt the need 'to dcstroy any tendency in art ... which
threatens the r e v o l ~ t i o n ' . ~ ~
T o the Soviet authorities clawic;il tnusic was perfectly acceptablt
since, as John Shepherd has poi~~tcct
out:
traditionally tonal c1assic;il nt~lsicboth encodes and articulates tltc
structure of a centralised political-economic system, and so w;15
c*~ltirelyappropriate t o the 'nrw' order of things in Russia. G ivcr I
Illis affinity, it was h;irclly likely that music articulating o1111.1co~rlpetingstructures wottld be tolerated. This goes a large I X I ~ I 1 1 1
LIIC way t o explaining w h y t h e morbid f r u s t r ; ~ ~ i l ) r1 l1 1
l'c11;iikovsky and the neurotic eroticism of Scri;il)ir~ wc.1 1.
tolvr;tted, while the clearer, more vigorous langua!:c. 01 1 ' 1 - 1 1 k 1 111i.i~
h;{\ oftcn been

'I'II(~

rhlcrn posed to the Soviet dictstnrsl~i~j

w.itb I 1 1 . 1 1 wl~ili.

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

music was n o threat t o their retention of power at the centre

r l ~ rCommunist hierarchy, the century in which they actually
lived saw the birth of all kinds of music which were indeed a threat.
Not only the 'new music' proper, but also devotional music and
some forms of popular music were utterly incompatible with the
structure of Soviet society and the Commrlnist ideology. Modern
music stressed a different form of Iiicr;~rchy. I t also stressed
individual expression, sometimes t o the poi111o f ;l~iarchy.I n coming
t o power , Stalin saw immediately th~ctrnll.;ii
a real threat t o
the stability of his regime. Irrespective o f rhc dictates of dialectical
.
1.
matcrlalvm
and its theorizations, i h r p-:iclic:il nccds of the real
world forced Stalin into a complctc ;tl)o111.1;1( 01'1llc attitude of the
Soviet leadership towards the tonal ;rrts. 1 1 1 1 0 2 7 the more avantgarde Association of Contemporary M11.>ici , r ~ ~W;IS
s ;ibsorbed into
the conservative, ideological Russi,
F Proletarian
Musicians. In the following yc.:rrs,
.S were kept
fairly much in place by virtilc o f r h ~ .
I of anything
remotely progressive. As c;11,1~
; I \ I ' ) . l r ) , 1 1 1 i . I \ I I ~ ~ , I ; I I /\ssociation
I
of
I ) y I I i v l l lion of Soviet
Proletarian Composers w:ls itscll- rc-l~l;~c-r.tl
Composers, an official organ o f t l l ( . ! : O V ~ . I . I I I I I ( . I I I '
In its basic essentials, the story 01' lItr Sovlr.~cllc.or~ncc~r
with the
I I ~ T I , ' that,
power of music is simply that ol' rlic C ~ I I I I I I I I clis~.ovcry
I ~
I)OSSCSS the
despite all of their reductionist thcorizi~lion.I I ~ I T ~clor.5
~ I I I I 1 &,I )c.icty, thus
power to introduce novel modes of conscio~~s~~r.\.,
changing the society. T h e only way of prrvc.rlllll!: Illis was t o
suppress thc novel music itself.
It is also important to note that somc forni\ 01 I I I I I . , ~ ~ , ,such as
classical, are cfficicnt in the preservation o f (111 I O I III., 01. modern
)ly
society, whether Capitalist or Communist. ,11111 ~ ~ l - ~ l , . r leven
. I Imusical
~)I
whether good or evil. Conversely, anarchistic ancl ~ I ~ ~ . Iivc
I ', ot moclern
forms, like plagues o r famines, are destructive to irlrv L ~ 111
society. This means that certain typcs of music. w111l1.
I )ring the last
thing a politician would want t o see let loose wit11i11 1 ) wn nati(on,
cllc Cdlllp of
are exactly what he would want t o sec at large wirl~in.I-..
the 'enemy'. But ir I order to use music as a wcapo~r~ J this
I
way, it is
obviously essential for the politician t o realize . ~ n ( lI>clieve in the
l
P
.
power of music in .rnc
rlrst
place. This, Western 1v;lclr.r~havc rarely
donc. However, their hard lesson regarding thc ~iolilical and social
power of the art was never forgotten by the Sovic~Communists. In
more recent times the Soviet and other Cornmunisi regimes of the
world have kept, or attempted t o keep, a tight rein upon the importation of rock music into their o w n countries. Yet there exists
I

I . ~ h . s i ( . , r l

111

'

'

-A--

16 1

cvidence that the political (l(f1-wing) II;I~III.C

oi 1 1 1 ~W c s r c ' r ~rock
~
.
..
.. .
.
industry has been signif'ic;i~~r
ly
cl
I,:I(
II('I'SIVCS
from the 1 9 j 0 s onwards."' Evt.11
III~II!~, 11
c t , I I1;1r,
since the 1 9 4 0 s , the Sovic*l\ II;I L ' ( ' ;l1 1 1 1 . 1 I l y 1 1 1 1 I I ( X
, I C ; I S ;I
'l'. .
1 1
~ ~ I I , II I,.rvicI
I ~ \ .A .
means of upsetting thc tii(-n~,ll
~ I ; I ~ ) I I I I O I \.Yr.q3~c.l.l~
Noebel has documcntcd i l l t i t , l ; ~ i l III(. ; I I I I . I I I J ) I ~ . 0 1 Sovir'l rc.l;l~c*cl
radicals t o set up record comp;r~iic.si l l 1111.M'r-s.~I I P I I I)(.l ) ~ . ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ I ! : : ~ ~ i o ~ ~
1'111 1 1 1 1 1 t l i ~ ( . r 1 . .I,; wrI1 .lL,
of hypnotic and harmful rni~sic:rl rt.r,l)l.cli~~!y.
for the releasing of left-wing ;rntl ; I I I I: I~ ~ ~~ ~ I (I, ( I l<~ . 1 1 1 t 1 I o I l ( I O ~l<
discs.
Besides those types of music which l i ; ~ v c s. I 1 1 ; . . 1 1 1 ~ ) 1i11~-!.IIvII I I I ) O I ~
m)!;3
III~II
, .I,. 11.15
society, music can also be a put(:ni r;lllyi~
frequently been displayed. Music: 1131 ;iCtc811 i t \ 111,.
v( IIO. 1111
the unification of individuals, rrtovcmcnt S, ~.l:r\\c.'.
111i.~.111
unity of purpose lies immense strength, so ;I, I 1 1 1 . .I!:I.~II1 1 I l l r .
bringing about of such unity, music has often cli;~~l!:c~tl
I l ~ 1r O I I I ..r, ( 1 1
history. Songs or musical movements havc ;ct r inlr.5 1 1 1 \ 1 1 t.11 1 . 1 1 1 I I I ,
nations. They have even created nations: it is scldonl ~.r..~li;lc.iI
I I 1tl.1v
to h o w great an extent the American Revolution W ; I \ , I I I ~ I I * . I ( . I I
revolution. Eloquent and rousing songs of protcst. l'rccxlo~~~
,11111
brotherhood first unified and awoke a pcoplc to tlirir drsrillv, 1 1 1 1 '
revolutionary music eventually being precipitated into ;I 1 ~ 1 1 ~. ~
~ ~l 1 l
revolution, and the United States of America being born.

'

)I

THE TONAL SIDE OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTTON

Several years before the Arneric;ln W a r of Independence, r c s i \ r . ~ ~I.~ c
songs began t o appear in print. 'l~licscswept the colonies, bcconliril;
extremely popular, and being actively sung by many.
Though the effect of thc sot.ig5 was t o quickly forgc a hro.~tl
feeling of unity and purposc. nrnong thc colonists, the works a c t ~ l ; l I I ~
origin,ated with small. org;~~liztxl
~ninoritiesw h o deliberately usrtl
the m edium of song as ;I rncb;rl1so f furthering their vision for 11tr
l'l~rureof thcir land. For ~ I I ( . nlosl part, these groups consisrc~lof
I;~x.c.~~~nsons
and the Sons o( I,il>crty.
TIICvital rolc of the I'l-cc,rnasons in the entire story of tlir 1trvol11
tio11 c,;cnnot be overtstin~.~~c.cl.
George Washington, his ( : l i ; r - f r . 1 1 1
S ~ a i f ,lllc grcat majority 01' the signatories of the Dci.l.~r.;~l
11 111 I $ 1
Indrp rndence. and almo51 ;rll the early prominent ~ ~ S I I I. +I I I(, .~ >
II!: I llr.
coloni es were Freema5ons. So too, amusingly cnc )r~!:li, rtlrhl.r r 111.
'Indi:igl> ~ r s k ~ u n s i bfor
l e the Boston Tea Party. The. M . I ~ . I I II II I. >1.1,. I .
t cntirc CaLl5c ,1111d core of the Kcvnluticrn.
lay ; ~ thc
'The p ~ ~ h l i cion
; ~ tof pa triotic freedom songs w:~.,O I I ( < ( 1 1 I 111.I I I . II I ~ I

'I'l I [I SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I, '

I 111 111.
w l ~11i the
~ Masons rallied and awoke a people t o their
I x r I I I v hI ,111s()I' the political leaders of the emerging nation. such
I., I I . ~ I II <~ I Iopklnson, Thomas Paine and Benjamin FranMin, were

101,

rl*.l I

10

167

MUSIC, MAN AND SOCIETY

, I I I I O I I ~L I I ~New World's most popular songwriters, in addition

I I ~ - I I I ~Freemasons. Francis Hopkinson, as well as being

a ~ t I ( ~ ~ o ~ I as
~ d America's
ged
first native composer, was also a
1'1 cqrlnasonand a signatory of thc Declaration of Independence. H e
is :~lsowidely believed to have been the designer of the American flag.

Iln)~~ounced
was a suprrmcly ;~n~bitiorls
(Inc.. (;iven thc rcli~tivcl~
. . .
. .
importance and minor status
during
1 1 1 ~1700s. the vision was also unc,
c.;~llcd
Ior mankind t o 'awake to thc c ; ~
( l 111:~
'l rc.(.ilom's flame' would roar ' W i ~ n;I I O I I ~ I 111) I e.vt.11 I I I tlisl ;l111
.ll~orrs'.As early as 1774, whilr Rrilislt ~~'ocq-riwl.lrb c-x;lt.llrl,t:
I-cvcbngefor the Boston Tea Party, thr N ~ , r ~ p oA9t.r(
r / I I I . ) ~I t ~ ~ l ~ l i r q,I l ~ ~ ~ t l
- . O I I ~ which included the following si;tr~li~~!:
-SI.III/.I:
II I I Y

The first patriotic music to be published in the New World appeared in 1 7 6 8 . John Dickinson's Liberg Song set the pattern for all
those which followed in the years before the manifestation of the
physical revolution itself:
Come join hand in hand brave Americans all,
And rousc your bold hearts at fair Liberty's call;
N o tyrannous acts shall supprcss your just claim,
O r stain with dishonour Amcrica's name.

A ray of bright Glory now Rc;~m\i l o m

.I~.II.

Blest dawn of an Empire to risc;

'he American Ensign now sparkles ;I S t ; ~ r ,
Which shall shortly flame wide rhru' r l ~ Sliit.~~
r
\(,me years before the onset of the actual W;u o f lnilc~pi.11i1~~111
IIIV
I~.~triotic
songsters had already made it plain chat they wc.lcS.IW.II.I.
I I the
~
martial power of tone. One verse, appearing i n t l l e - ljs~totr
(.'l~r.orzicle
of 2 3-26 October, 1769, sombrely warned:
(..

Ifz Freedom we're born rlnd in Freedom r t l e ' l l livc,

Our purses are ready,
Steady, Friends, Steady,
Not as slaves, bat ns Freemen our mony tcle'II ~ I ~ P P

But when our country's cause the Sword demands,

And sets in fierce array, the warrior bands ;
Strong martial music, glorious rage inspires,
Wakes the bold wish and fans the rising fires.

...

All ages shall speak with amaze and applause.

Of the courage we'll shew in support of our I:~ws:
T o die we can bear - but to servc we disdain.
For shame is to Freedom more dreadful than p:~in.

I n Freedom we're born

...

I Illring the war itself, there wns no mistaking the Americ;~ns'

I.~vouritevictory music. Thomas Anburey, a member of the surrcntl(.rrd British army, wrote from intcrnment on 2 7 Novembcr.

1777:
Ydnkee Doodle is now their p;tcan. a favourite of favourites,

History records that the Liberty Song 'becamt :in ol~5cnssion,being

sung cvcrywhcre: at political demonstrations. prolcst meetings,
patriotic cclcbrations, dedication ceremonies for lil)crty trees, for
pure rnjoyment. and also for nuisance value tn r.lll,;lge the British

I~layedin their army, cstcr.nlcd as warlike as the Grenadier's

i\l;~rch- it is the lover's sprll, 111cnurse's lullaby. After our rapid
6sllr,c:c.sses,
we held the Ysnkcrs in great contempt, but it was n o t :t
I I I I I ( . mortifying to hcar thcrr~
this tune, when their ;Irlliv
111.1rc.llcd
down to our surrcndcr.

...'h6

Such songs playcd a major role in the early l'ormation of the

Americans' sense of nationhood. Esotericists Inay also read
significance into the fact that the songs were sung regularly and
widely by large gatherings of people: thus, the tones of freedom and
resistance were continually and powerfully going forth from 1 7 6 8
onward. Even discounting the esoteric angle, the connection of such
music to the events which followed is unmistakable.
From the beginning, the vision for the future which the songs

be mentioned th:tt the American patriots were cor~vill~

(*c l
11i-ir struggle was divinely supported. In this I lrcy ~ v ( *c .t
~ ~ l ~ ~ : ~ ~ by
l l c the
~ ; ~Freemasons,
ded
who had knnwn ;l11 . I ~ I , I I , I : 1 1 1 1 .
~ l r . \ ~ i10
~ ~which
v
the New World was directed, ;rncl wllo 1c.11 111.11
t I t ( + VI-1.y :rn,qcls of God vvere behind their e n d r ; t v o ~ ~f ~: . ~~ . ~. ~ t l ~
!;11,1r11in!!
I I I C s o 11s of lib(:rty, and helping tc-) I,rill!: 1 1 t 1 I 11 .I 11.11 11 111

It

..Ill ~ l l t l

I 11.11

.IIIBI

~ ~ ~ !

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC. MAN AND SOCIETY

W I I I ~1 1 ~ 0 1 1 1 ~ OIIC
1
day illumine the world. Indeed, at times it was as
I 1 1 1 )II!:II
I hc very heralds of heaven were whispering their own lyrics
11110 111c receptive ears of the Mason-musicians. D r Joseph Warren's
Nrr,, ~MarsachusettsLiberg Song sounds as much the utterance of a
( ;oJ of Freedom as that of a Boston patriot:

~~.trion.there is enough to givr one p;iusc. hcforc cic~*laringthe

/\tnrricans' earnest beliefs to li,~vcI>t'('ti i l l ( OI.I.(V I .

I l<!{

W e led fair F R E E D O M hither, when 10 the Desart smil'd,

Paradise of Pleasure, was open'd in the Wild;
Your Harvest bold AMERICANS ! no Power shall snatch away,
Assert yourselves, yourselves, yourselves, my brave A M E R I C A
Lift up your Heads my Heroes! and swear with proud Disdain,
The Wretch who would enslave you, shall spread his Snares in
vain;
Should EUROPE empty all hcr FORCE, you'd meet them in
Array,
And shout, and shout. ;ind shout, and shout, for brave
A M ERICA.
Thomas Paine's Liber0 Trtt gave pr:iiw t o the trcc of liberty which
would take root, flourish and draw 'thr n ; ~ ~ i o naround
s
to seek its
peaceable shore'. The song also ncknowlccl,i:cd lhv existence of
supporting celestials - an acknowl~d~cnicnr
i~lrc~iclctl
to be taken no
more symbolically or poetically than litcrall y :
In a chariot of light from the regions of cl:~y,
The Goddess of Liberty came;
Ten thousand celestials directed the way,
And thither conducted the dame,
This fair budding branch, from the gardrn ; ~ l ~ ) v c ,
Where millions with millions agree,
She bro't in her hand, as a plcdgc of her Icrvc~,
Thc plant shc call'd Liberty Tree.
The song was first published in July, 177 1, untlrt. ilie
'Atlanticus'.
Ultimately, such s o n p were voiced by thc v;lrly patriots in the
genuine spirit of prayer and invocation. Their 1:rcemason leaders
believed the nation's destiny t o have been mapped out in advance by
divine agents, requiring only courage, faith, song and application to
bring it forth into manifestation. Considering the subsequent
miraculous birth, victory and unparalleled growth of the new

169

MUSIC IN INDIA

171

of that t o which the terms rcfer. Cosmic Souncl, Prini;il Vibri~tion,

Il

4.
The Ancient Wisdonl :
Music in India
The syllable O M , which is the imptrirhnhlr Ijfirkmnrr, is the universe.
Whaltoever has e-xisted, wbatroerf~rr.~itl\,rt~lrlrl\occershall e.vist
hereafter, is O M . A n d w h a ~ s o ~ ttrrlrt~irrrr/\
~rr
I,,/\/, pwcmt a n dfitture,
that also is OM.
Thus begins the Mandrrkyd Il l ~ ; l n i ~ . I l . t ~1 l)II(.
,
of India's oldest
writings. Though the t e r m i n o l o ~nl:ty
~ tlilf(.r,wc. lilld ourselves confronted here with thc very samc conc-c-pl 01 r l ~ cI'I.~III;I~
Vibration
that we encountered in thc pliilllst t l ~ I ~ 1v,I . t ~ ~ c . i c ' ~ l China.
t
In
~ , ~concept
r ~ r ~ i of
Hinduism, the syllable O M not 0111y ~ . c ~ l ~ r . c ~I llc
Cosmic Sound but, when uttcred, is 1iclirvc.cI 1 1 ) .tt r l l ; l l l y ;ittune the
individual to thc celestial Tone itself.
The Hindu has always tended to be mrwc inw;l1.(Ily~ l l ~ h t i cthan
al
outwardly industrious. Thus, in India thtrr
l'lr.r.11
lcss of a
tendency t o physically harmonize their civilix;~lrr,~l
with universal
principles, as the Chinese did by means of thr l)t~'rr!r:r Ivrnq. Rather,
the Hindus have placed an even greater cml,ll.l,.i-, tl1;ln did the
ancient Chinese upon the sacred alignment of' r o~~\riolr.\t~css.
In this
spiritual endeavour the concept of O M , as thr c - ; t r . ~ l ~sound
l~
which
mirrors the Sound of the O n e Tone, is par;inlotllll Intoning the
OM, in combination with certain mental and spil i t l1.11 disciplines, is
of prime importancc in raja yoga. I n some mcdit:l~~oll
techniques the
OM is not actually uttered at all, but simply ir~l,~!:inedwith the
inner ear, conscqut.ntly attuning the soul directly W i~ l1 the Soundless
Sound.

OM
W c have used various terms \o far in the courcr of this book in
refcrcnce to the Soundless Sound, applying first oric and then
another in order not t o limit. but to expand one's conccptualization

~ Logos,
r
the Music of thc Spliors, t lir W o r d , c:c*l(.sti;tl 11;irmonics.
the O n e Tone - all such conccpls ;ire i~lt.lu\ivc-w i ~ l l i ltllr
~ I-lindu
rrrm, OM.
In the Vedas, India's oldrst scripture+\, wllit.li ; t ~ .1.11
r 1111 )I .111~.irllt
i l ) c v l ;la, l1ri11,t;I I I C Ixlsic
than the Old Testament. the O M
, ~ I I ~ I I O I I I C I I , I 01' N ; I I I I ~ ~ .
11;ituralforce inhcrcnt throitghot~r ;
;ind from which all other forccs ;trr ~ ~ r ~ ~ v'I'lrr~,11!:11
v t l . 1111. V , I W . I I O I . ~
v<-13r.
~ w w e rof the OM, God c r c ~ t r d;111(l \ I ~ \ I . I ~ I I . , I 111.
I Iescending in frequency from tlic. rc;~lm\ ( , l 11111-1.
I I 1111.
;ircna of time and space, the O M shnlic\ : I I I ( ~~ I - ! : . I I I I ~ I - . l i ~ ~ ~ t ~ i ~ ~ ~ - ( l i . ~ l
.-energy in such a way as t o caurt. ; I I ( I I I ~ \ I O ~ ~ r . ~ l ~ ~I I cI It I .~ ,~
s t i n g physical matter. All that cxists ic tl~c.rr.lrrl~c.
I O I I ~r,rvc.rl .I%*
fundamentally vibrational in naturc. This ; 1 ~ 1 ~ i I i (111
. < ,I I 1 1 1 1 I~I I
tangible substance, but to all forms of energy, l,il:l~r, 11r.11 , I ~ I I I I I ~ I ~ ~
sound - all are stated by the Vedas t o be thc vibrn~ion;^ l It ,I.( 1. ( $ 1 I 111.
OM manifesting a t different frequencies and c o r n l > i ~ l ; t ~ i(o$ 1~ ~11-1.
\
quencies.
In a variety of ways there exist indisputable simi1nritic.s I)(.I w ~ . ( * I I
Hinduism and Christianity, and one of these sirnilaritics lic.5 i l l III(.
concept of the O M , for one can hardly avoid the conclusion th:~tI I I ~ .
OM and the W o r d of Christianity are onc and the same (horror 01
horrors though this may be t o the Christian fundamentalist!). I r : ~ t . l l
;ire associated with the Creation, and each with the Second Prrson
of the Trinity (Vishnu in Hinduism, and the Son in Christianity).
'To speak of 'the W o r d ' is to rcfer indirectly t o a phenomenon;
whereas the OM is that phmomcnon. OM is the W o r d .
The Vedas place great emphasis upon audible sound, for sound is
said to be a manifestation o f the Cosmic Sound itself. The Vedic
language of Sanskrit diffcrcnti;itcs bctween audible sound and
Cosmic Sound, calling thc Sorrncr nbata and the latter andhafa.
.4 hata, audible sound, can h r Ilc;~rdby everybody by means of thc
c;iI.\, W]lereas andhata cannor. Flowcver, a?zahata can be heard - 111.
c q ~ t.~
~ r t ~ ~-cby
e d the advancctl yogi sitting deep in contemplatinn.*
i<:itlicr than merely consiclrring audible sound t o be thc !fi;*rt 01
vibr:lrion. the ancient writrr.; of' the Vedas went one step l;trlll~.l.
consicln.in): Cosmic Sountt t o I)c the cause of all vibrational ; I ~ iI v i i(-.
~
ancl f'c brlccs. Lighlt, which consists of vibrations of a much I ~ i ! : l l ( - ~ . 11 1.
cluency than thos,e of audil,lc sound, was neverthclcss sr.can.I*. I ~ ~ * I I I ,.II :
Ll:-,.Ii)rtii 01 ....
>uL,lllrrnLed
tonc. The Sanskrit words for thc I wrl \rl,ll 1 4 11
li!:l~t ;{r1'1 .S[!rZRI f o r tonr -- indicate in root syllnhlrc Itow ~ . I I I I I ~ . I 111
I
a wcre o~tlcc known r o I>(-. 'I'lrc- . I ~ I ~ I I I I ~ I I I . I I
I I , I I I I ~ Ct:hc two ~limomcn
(,

'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I I?

thc end of svara, the word for tone, indicates that tones are
particularized light.
Music holds a position of vital importance within the Hindu
cosmo-conception. Since it consists of audible sound, or ahata, it is
viewed as being a manifestation of anahata, which is to say, of the
OM. Therefore. music, like all audible sound, contains some of the
very power, energy and consciousness of thc Word of God. T o the
ancient Hindu, as to the Chinese, audiblc sound was thought
capable not only of influencing the mind ; ~ n dcmotions of man, but
literally of shaping and changing physical cvcnts taking place within
the world. Sound accomplished this by gr;ccIually altering the nonphysical vibratory patterns which lay xi thc roor of all objects.
Of all the forms of audible sound, tliosc. c,rc*;itcdby man were
deemed to cxert the most powcrfi~lc.l'fCcr,Ior ~ h csounds of man the use of the voice and the pl;iying 01. I I I I I S ;II~ ~ instruments - were a
very specific and intelligently cont rollrtl I . ( . ~ I .I :)SI ~
vibration. Hence
they were capable of resulting i l l c l ( . I i ~ l i ~ ,c I~ I I ~ \~)ccific
~
changes in
consciousness and in the physic:~lcvcwl.; of 1111' world. Shiva is said
to have exclaimed, pointing out INIW II~.;I I O sc*rvc.him: 'I like better
the music of instruments and voict-s t l r : ~ ~I i lil<c' :I thousand baths
and prayers.'
Volume I of the New O.ufordHi.rror?, ?f M I I ~ in11)rnls
II
us that:
':I'

;I[

51cpped-down,

~ i

The notion that the power of niusic, csl~c~c.i.~ll~

1 1 1 1 . il~lonedword,
can influence the course of human destiny . t r ~ ( l r,vckrl 11ic order of
the Universe, goes back to the very oltlr\~ ..l11 viving form of
Indian music, namely, the music of tlir Vt.cl;~\.'l'hc intoned
formula is the pivot point of the wholr ~ I : I I N I I,111' structure of
Vedic offerings and sacrifices. It is the ptrwcSl of' the words
enunciated with the correct intonation, rl1;11 tl(-tcrmines the
efficiency of the rites: a mistake may ~ 1 c ~ ; t oc.vc,rything.
y
The
priests claim that by their activity they not I I I I I ~11l)l101d
the order
of human society, but maintain the stability 1 1 1 111runiverse. By
means of well-conducted ceremonies they I>;I\,(. c olllpelling power
over the Gods themselves. The instrunitnr I I I , I I conveys that
power is the word.''

It is said that a singing girl, by singing so perfcrtly a certain raga,

avertcd a famine in Bcngdl by causing the cloutls to shed their
moisture upon the crrsps hclow.16 Another tr;icii~ionrefers to the
fearsome, magical effects of the Dlpaka ragd, which was said to
destroy by fire all who tried to sing it. According to the story, the

173

MUSIC IN INDIA

1~1111xror
Akbar ordered a fr~~iious
n~usic.i;~~i,
N;tik C;opaul,

to

sing

I I I ( - rdgn. Akbar's motive in d o i ~ ~s go w ; ~ st o 1)rovc. I>c.yo~lddoi~ht

I II;II the raga really did posscss suc.11;r ~ ) o w t * ;oj);1111
~.
11.ic.J 10 vxcrac
I~llllself,but Akbar insisted th;it C;ol>;ir~l01
'1'111. 5i11j:r1.1.11md")r~Ilc.gged permission to return home ;incl I i ~ l':~rc.wc-ll
l
1 1 I I l i \ I ; I I I I ~ ~ :illcl
1 1 ic-nds. The request was gr;~ntcd;111cIrll) I I I I I I I I . ,11111 11.11 li I : I ~ < ~ I I ~ :
;opaul six months. When he rcturnctl i~ w;~r,W in1 1.1.. y1.1 cl~-sl>i~r
11ic.
1 1 1 l t l and before singing, Gop;tul pl:tc.rcl I l i l l ~ \ ~ . l iI l l 1111. \ ~ I I I I I I . I riv(*~-,
I I I V waters reaching up as high ;is I~isnr.c.k. ( ; I , ~ Y ; I II IIO I~ M' ~+ ,w;I*.I ~ I . I I
111ccoldness of the river would 1)roirt.l I I ~ I I I - yc-I 1111 - a ~ ~ o t ~11.10
c n ~ Ilr
,
..ling a few notes than the rivcr grcw hot. (;o~>:IIII ( I , I I I I I I I I ~ ' I ~1 1 1 .;~ri!:,
. ~ n dthe river began to boil. At this point I I I C . si11~:r.l.111 . I J : I I I I ~ ,
11c.ggedto be excused, but Akbar would 1 1 ~ ~ 1 1I . I O I I ( ~ of i~ 'I'III'I(.IIII.I'
N;tik GoPaul resumed the song, upon which viol(-111I ~ . I I I I ~ - . I)IIIL.I
Iorih from his form, consuming him to as he^!^'
(

'I'HE MYSTICAL BASIS OF MUSIC AND SPEECl-I

'I'llc idea at work throughout the Vedic mysticism o f s o ~ ~i..~ 1 ~
I I . ~t I l
~llusicand the human voice provide a vehicle for thc 111:111il>hl ; I I i l , I I
o f the energies of Cosmic Sound. According to the souncis protl~~r.c.il,
*;I) will the effect be. Each instrument, possessing its own unit111c
I imbre, therefore releases a different form of sound-forcc. l i t 11
c.xample, the three classes of instrument - string, wind and yrrc 11,.
rion - are associated with the Trinity: Brahma, Vishnu and S1iiv.c.
'I'l~rpersonages of this Trinity actually represent all manner of t r i u ~ ~ c
;lspects of Nature which are manifested throughout the universe. At
~ h c i rmost fundamental level, the Trinity represent three primary
,I~ n d
sacr,ed forms of cosmic energy, and it is these energies which arc
I',cleased into the world by means 01' music.
Acco rding t o Occidental t.sot-c-ric traditions, the Trinity arc
present in music in the form of' 'Il;~rmony
, melody and rhythm
~
'I'liough Indian music has virtu:~ll!/ rio h a rnony,
there are sirnil;~~.
rsl'~rcnceswithin ancient 1ndi:111Io r e t o tlhe role of melody and
&I.
:L :rl1y111111.
Western esotericism
it mac l r IS the Father-God asprct
01. tllc 'Trinity which relatcs 1 0 harmony; yet not so mucl1 t o
I ~ a s ~ ~ i oitself
n y as to interval.; of' pitch differences bctwecn the cliff;.
rent Ilotcs of the scale. In other words, the Father aspect rcl:ll I 1 )
what 11
called thc 'vertical' axis of music, sintr pi1111
~Iiffercn
)t in thenisc.lves take place over t-inir ;it ;III. I ~ I I I , I l y
~ l ~ c ~ i ~ s c l~vcc~s ,~ labstrxct
din
and unmanifested. In this sc.n\c., I\I-.IIII)I.I
01' the tl indu Trinity c;trl indeed b e said t o be prrcc~itin ,111 I I I I P . I ~ .
S l ~ i v ;o~r ,~ h Holy
t
Spirit, rcpresent S the presrncc of ( ;I 111 I I I . I I I I ~ ~ . \1.11
I
.L

'I'lil:, SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN INDIA

~ ~ l . ~ r t . world.
r i , ~ l In music, Shiva is that which gives music
tithin the known world of time and space, for Shiva relates
m, the movement of music over time. O f these two, 13rahma
{;I, is born Vishnu the Son, even as melody is born of the
Ir~t>~cn.rtonnl
Cross between rhythms, or 'horizontal' movement over
~ilrlc,and harmony, or the 'vertical' difference in pitch.
Indian writers havc always stressed that primacy in music
I)clongs to the voicc. The voice is thought to be a more potent
medium for the expression of cosmic forces than are inanimate
instruments. Esoterically, the voice is associated with the MotherG o d , thus adding a fourth member to the Trinity of string, wind
and percussion instruments. There are t w o reasons for this more
potent power of the voice. Firstly, n o other instrument can express
s o perfectly all the delicate subtleties of spiritual feeling that the
musician seeks to give forth t o othrrs as sound, because only the
voicc has a direct bodily connrction wich the intellect itself.
Secondly, the voice of man is particul:lrly intiniatcly associated with
II
the O M , the voice of G o d . -H- ~ I I ~ I ; I slwcch
is ;t lesser, stepped-down
aspect of the OM itsclf, si tlce nI;lri is ;I Son o f , ;tnd a part of, G o d
Himself. Therefore, throul:h tlic trsc of 11;s v I IC.;IIcord s in speech or
. . . :.I- P .
in singing, man is thought ,-.I
L O 11t. .r co-~.rc.:~tor
W I ~ I ~
I o dAccording
.
to the symbolic writings of the Aifdr~yrrI lp;~nishncl,the Creation
involvcd the formation of a cosmic 'rno~~tll','I:rom the mouth
proceeded speech, from speech Agni. firr.' Wirl~ilirhc lesser world
of time and space, this same crcative Holy S l ~ i r iIrrrccb
~
or fire, Agni,
is said to proceed from the throat of mortal nl;ll). (;roups of sadhus
roam the land of India o r congregate at rcligio~~s
irstivals, chanting
bhajans ;tnd yogic mantras for many hours prr it ;I y , ctvcry day o f thc
year; an d this for the dual purpose of eIevatin!: them srlves in consciousne: is and maintaining the equilibrium oi t l ~ rsociety. For
thousands of years there has never been an in\l;ln~of time when
many thousands of holy men were not chxntin/: Sanskrit verses
within the Indian subcontinent, that evil OI. tliwster might not
prevail on earth.
A similar function is attributed t o thc in~oning, over the
millennia, of the ancicnt Vedas. T h e Vedas, which are the basic
scriptures of Hinduism, are also revered by thc ;]clherents of other
religioris.such as Buddhism and Jainism, and ;trc. among the oldest
religious texts in the world. A point often nlissed by Western
readers of the Vedss is that these texts never were primarily
intended only t o be read and quietly studied, but were sacred hymns
which were intoned and sung. The Upanishads, which form a

1 ~ ) r ~ i of
o n the Vedas, and which
sol(! i l l 13:1~1t.rl),tc.k
1;)rrn in the
~ I i ; ~ l o g t ~ ~ : )rigs
West. are not p1
: their function
1 1 ) c011
I-,ICI.
a1 wisdom, but lit(
I wist111111
;~ncl
S . I ~L C U energy. Energy was a~w;[y\cc~rl..~t~t.~-t.tl
I I I I>(. r - r ~ c - . t \ r - c ~wltc.11
1 1 1 ~ . magical Sanskrit forrnul:~~
wrrc. vot.~l~;.r.tl.
'I'lii\ I - 1 l ~ 1 . Ij ;I ~I I ~
I ~ c I ~ e-d not only thcorctic;llly, I>LII ; t l \ o 1 t 1 . 1 c I I I , 1 1 1 ~ to C I < * * I { C 1111.
\piritual states of mind and o f l i t . wliicl~I I I V wrr111..1 1 1 . a . t 11lrrcl

I ) I
a11

1111

175

MUSIC AND SPIRITUAlITY

I>ue to the danger of music k i n g niistl\~-clI ) y I I I V 111 I , : I I ~ 11 1 1 1 1 . I I I
C-l;tssical Indian music great stress
.III(I
\piritual stature of the musician. I n
,111 11
.l11
Indian nlusician o r dancer, the stt
c.\rablished artist. Invariably the teacher, after thc m,lny yc..~~..
a r I III.,
own training and association with the music, h;ts ilcvt~lol)c.,l. I l i v r , ~ ~
scnse of spiritual awareness and responsibility. The tc;~c.l~c.~.
I I1r.1 (.I111 1.
1)ecomes both a music teacher and a guru to the stilclr.nr. I t I-. 1 1 1 1 1
*,idered inconceivable for the student t o attempt t o seriously IN'I I I I I , I I I
c~lassical Indian music o r dance before a solid rgroundin!: i l l 1111%
xncient religious texts and their teachings upon the rnystic;~l;Irlwc 1,.
OS music have been mastered. From the outset, the training i., 1)11111
~lli~sical
and spiritual.
As early as the third or fourth century BC, the author 01' rllc
Kar~zayamastated that a singer should eat sweet fruit and roots in
slnall quantities, that he should accept n o money o r other rernuncralion for his art, and that hc shnuld ;tlways sing exactly as taught
without any attempts to impmvc o r change the master's composilion with flourishes and thc likc. S t ~ c hstandards are not always
Ii~llowed today, yet still the most ;tccomplished
arc
;tlways extremely religious inclivi~l~~;~ls.
In the past, however, 1ndi;~n
111usicianswere not only g r c ;t~ 13crli)rmcrs, but also advanced yogis.
Wlr;~ttheir music must havc sot~ndedlike, fusing so perfectly t h r :rrt
oi lone with the peak of sislf-control and the heights of rnystic.,~l
.I w;trc.ncss, w e can today o r l l v hegin to imagine. Writing o f rllc.,,r.
!:rc:~t fiKilres of the past, Rxvi Sllankar states that they had c t r n ~ ~ ) l ( . l ~ .
(-ontr~rl
over their bodies:
8

( , I

kncw all the secrets of Tantra, hatha yot(n. . ~ t ~ tc ll i t II'I I . I I I

..c
,,l ..--..l*
r r c c u n power, and they were pure, n.;r.c.~ic .111t1 1 1 1 1 1 1 y
1'1i*rirl11
as hccn the wonderfui tradition 111 I I I I I I I I I I ' S I ~
. t t i ~ lc\
, though such miracles may nor Itr 17r.1 I O I 111r # l , o r l c
I s r l l l n

q>

'1'1 I E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

1 'r,
U

,111

sbr.~- I

11,- inlnlense impact on the listener and, as many put it,

l ~ ' r\ j ) i ~ . i t ~ l ; ~experience7
I
the

listener feels.68

h l ~ ~ \ i;tssists
c
the Indian devotee to direct his emotions upward in
Ior the Supreme, to still the rebellious mind and bring it to a
1xli11r of concentration. Music even aids, it is believed, in the raising
i 11 the 'vibration' or spiritual frequency of the body itself, beginning
thr process of the transformation of matter into spirit, and conseqirently returning matter to its original state. Thus, as all is O M , the
OM as music calls to the OM as manifested in the soul of man, to
draw it back t o the Source of the OM itself.
lllvc

NAME AND FORM

I

l
i
'I

,l
iI

l1

1l

11
l

The moulding power of sound is attributed not only to music, but

also to the spoken word. According to the Hindu cosmology, the
name of a thing is actually a vital key to understanding its inner
nature. The name of anything is its key-note sound-pattern, the
expression in audible sound of the higher vibratory patterns which
have created the form itself. This is conil~lctclydistinct from the
Occidental conception of name, which is tllought to act merely as a
label, much like a reference numbcr. To tllc studivd Hindu, a name
is not an arbitrary reference numbcr, I.YIII tllr ,rc~.u;tlmathematical
formula of ratio and vibration upon which t
c,rr;rrion and sustainment of the form or living being is bascd. 'Tllrrr c,;un only be one
correct name for any person or object, for any otllc'~'11;ime would be
an incorrect formula. T o change one's n;rnir is to change one's
personality.$ This is the understanding upon whicl~rhc language of
Sanskrit is based, in which all phenomena arc n:~liirJaccording to
their root-formulas. The language is derived froni ;L long-forgotten,
unknown source of great occult wisdom. Sanskrit 11;tsalways been
considered to be a holy language, because its snuntls are such a pure
expression of God, the Geometry of Divinity. li;lch letter and
syllable of the language is mathematically and mystically precise. T o
alter the language is absolutely forbidden.
The seed sound of any object, phenomenon or condition is
known as its bijrI rnantra. By knowing this srrcl sound, a yogi
believes he can achieve ;I state of absolute knowledge of the thing
itself. Likewise, by a certain use of the mantra, thr thing itself can br
destroyed or changed - or created if it does not yet exist. O n the
subject of bija mantras. the American religious leader, Elizabeth
Clare Prophet, has stated:

MUSIC IN INDIA

177

Over thousands of years, ancicnt tr;tclitic~n11;rsbrought forth the

I~ijasounds of many of the nlost cx;~ltc.clIx*~ngs,its wcll as thc
elements of earth. air, watcr and fire. I3y pi.rlorn~ir~g
j;~l>;r, or
repetition, with a bija m;~nls;~,
wc-. r,rr:itc .I I ~ ; ~ l t l ~ oI,c.son;incc
r~ic
with the being or elcmcnt wl~o\c.st.min;~l~.o1111(1 111.11 1)ij;r
mantra.
In a linguistic sensc, bij;ts 11;1vcno IIII..III,II,;
i l l ;1nc1of t 1 1 ~ 1 1 1 selves. But mantra yogis lillly r r a l i ~ c111.1t 111i- S.iltti. or ) ) t l t r . l l l
force of the Divinc Hcing, is I ~ ; I ~ S I I I I I I I -1I1~) t l ~ rO I I ~ w110 is.
chanting the mantra.
The bija sound for the earth clrmc~nr i,. I ,/\M ( I ~ I I I'1'111.
) IBI~.I
sound for water is VAM. Thc bijn qotlntl IOI. . i i ~ I., Y A M . I * i r ( - i\
the sound RAM. Ether, or akasa, has ~ 1 1hij:~
~ . :,o111ri1
1 l :\ /\I
As we give these bija mantras, we c;ln : I I I I I I I I . 1 0 l l ~ r . 111111.1
pattern of each plane of God's being.
Each one of these five sounds ends in the lcttcr M wl~itI r 1111.
sound of Mother or MA. It is the sound of the H l l M (lrtl~l~n)
I 11
the Mother flame, and it is the sound that ~ r ~ s t ; i l l i xw1t.11
r * ~ 10%
coming forth from the causal stress into physical m;rt I t-I hi I , I I I ~ I
is the author of the Mater universe.
The first letter of each bija denotes its frequency. Thr. cc.n11..11
vowel of each is A - the action of Alpha, or the Father pritlriplr.
The Father creates, the Mother seals the creation. The tlirrr
letters of each bija form the Trinity - the Trinity that is :~lw;ty.;
necessary to have a s e ~ d . ~ '
ill

INDIAN MUSIC AND ITS APPRECIATION

'Traditional Indian music can hc divided into three general classcs:
classical music (i.e. the r a ~ n ) purely
,
sacred music (vocal chants to
deities such as in bhajans),and fidk [nusic. All three are readily avail.
able to us today in the form o t rrcordings made by some of India's
grcatest artists in these gcnrrs. M(.,rcover, some of India's grcat
;irtists regularly tour in the Wrst. This practice was largely initi;~tetl
, who
ga.ined great popularity i n
sitar player, Ravi Sh;~nk;tr
'
and America among sc~nicof the ycjunger generation ~IIII.~II!:
:. 1960s and early 1070s. The b r others Imrat and Vil;~v.ll
r
Nrian, ;lnd Ali Akbar Khan ;ilso tour ~rcr~uently,
these bcing : I I I ~ I ~ I I ~ :
thc prc;rtest of India's living musicians. However, it cclulrl Irt. ,II-!:~II.~I
that i l l order to experirnce the total, committed ; r r r i i t ~ ~ l ~ l ~ 1t 1.1 ~ r .
Indian music, there exists no replacement for hearing i t i l l ;I-. I \ . I ~ I I I . I I
c-nvironment, as the holy men of the hills chant thcir I I I )~~ - I I I I I , I : I r t 1 1 . 1 l..,
t,r ;IS the musicians of the local village s p o n t a n c t r ~ y,.1111r.t
~ ~ l ~ .II - 3 ~ ~ r ~ 5 ~ - ~
L

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC I N INDIA

I I # I 111c' hounding out of the tones of the hour.

Western and Indian classical music have each taken their art t o the
l ~ i ~ l ~point
c s t of beauty and sophisticated tonal expression, but each
11'1sctonc so in a differcnt way. That thc qualities of Western music
(such as its use of harmony) are not often foilnd in Indian music, and
the qualities of Indian music not frequently t o be found in Western
music is not a failing of either. Since each 'ire radically distinct
cvoliltions of the tonal art, each must bc r~.;~c.ctcd
and listened t o in
~t.S o w n M ray, according t o its o w n critcri;~of what the music is
o rientcd tc,wards achieving T o the unaccr~\to~ncd
ear, Indian music
C*,, >uLiLlu strange and alien, and likc ; m y ~uusic.,
hcforc one is really
:xactly what
attuned to it, it can even sound rnonot
the music's
it is not! However, once one has 1 c ~
many deer and hcautiful
i t is ,111 ; I I 1 ~ I I I ( . I I I ~ Iwnich
~L
is maintained for life. It even seems nt rimcbs .is r lioil,qI1 tllc Wcsterner who
t o think and act a
develops a taste for the raga dc,rs I i ; ~ r ~ \ c - l II>c.):in
little in thc manner of an 0ricllt:ll tlrvolc.r.. Ijcx.o~)lingmore subtle
and meditative of clharactcr.
In listening t o Irrdian mu. ;ic. on(. ~.oulclt l o woroc. I I I ; I ~ t o heed the
wise words of advi cc froni T'er cl- I I ; I I I I ( . ~ , 1111. ( ; ( ' I I I I ; I I I musician and
writer, that:

This reveals clearly why it is so iniport;~nrt01.111c. I~ldi;lll~ ~ l u s i c itao~ i

i1 music I '
I3e of pure consciousness. In Wcstc,
usually 'lost' midst the bocty o i [hl
rrc.Ilr\~I.;( ;
I l l ( )\(.l,,[ l
parts are often clearly laid down I)
however, and particularly in the. rti,qr~,I I I C c.11til.c ' ; I I I I I O ~ , ~ ) I I ~ . I . ~; I. I' I C ~
cli~aliryof thc piece depcnds u p o n r l ~ rmu\ic.i.~nI i i l ~ l c t . l I , wllo I)~liltls
up and invents the ex;~ct ~ncloclit. I ~ . ~ I I ( T I I - ~'i4. ) I ( . !!OI-F ; I ~ O I I ~ : .
I~iterally,the rasa prc5cnts ;I 51~ G I I I I I )C c o ~ ~ \ eI ~I I i\ cI I ~ - ~ +, 1, 1 1 ( l , \ I 11r.1 t , l q s
:I very obvious examplc o f OLII. sc:lr ( + I I - I ~i l. lI ,1111I 111cvic ) I I ~ ~I ~ . I \ ) I( . I ,
that music acts as a comnli~nic;itor;IIICI 1 1 i 1 l l 1 i j 7 l 1 c . 1 i b I ititl(.~.
51.tlr.\.

IN

For Indian music, as for the pcrk,r~nc.r I I ~ I ~ ~ < ~ I i' l ~ Iis' , I I I L I C ~morc
b p irblr / o I/\/rr~r1,1i/k /he hear/,
important that the p~lblic~I3o~ld
rathcr than observe the musical d e ~ c l { > ~ ~ m01c ~ 't,l~l ~ ) ~ ) r c c ithe
ate'
music critically and dispassionately ... C)IIL,(. r ~nr.11.1s'got the fcel
of' Indian music, its monotony suddenly I,r.c.r~nlr..;so colourful
into deeper
and full of nuances that its riches start to \ I j i I 1 OV(.I.
dimensions.

'"

Among the programme notcs for his 197 f EIII-c

111r.;t1 1 'I'oilr, Pandit
Patekar ;dviscd his audiencc that in listening t o I I I I ~ I , I I I music thcy
should :
in thought frorli 111c. usual way uf
Temporarily rclcasc
thinking and coliccntratc o n the higher. spiri~il.~l
,tspects of lifc.
I~Iusicoffers the bcst nicans for such concentr;c~~orl.
Placc thc univcrs:~l in front of your con~cmplation, and
endeavour to Iay aside or t o forget the habit n i looking a t partial
aspects only . . .
T r y to think your way inside the artist. I n other words, try to
fccl with him and t o become one with both artist and theme.

'

THE RAGA
The raga (or rag) is the basic form of Indiiin cl;lc.;ic;il n i ~ ~ .# (11~1rr.(l,
~i<
it may always have been sa. There cxists cvidcrlr.r I 11.(( I l ) ( . r;?,r l , l 11 ,l
rrlga-like form of music, cxisted as early a s 400 I { ( ' . 'I'IIIIII!:II I I I V
instruments of ancient India differed c o n s i d e r ~ l >r'rorn
l ~ I I I I I..I. I T I I l \ r b
today, it seems that the musical forms a n d structures 0 I I I I I W r i1111.r.
were similar t o those of today, possibly differing frntrl r o t l ; ~y'c r i y i \
n o more than the ragas of modern India differ betwccn tl~c.r~~~~r.lvr.\
Srom the north to the south of the subcontinent.
Over thousands of years of musical evolution, rhtb Vrrgr I I : I ~
cleveloped into a n art form capable of summoning up the 1111151
intense spiritual feelings. T h e listencr may experience indcscril~;~l~ly
deep yearnings for something not quite defincd, but which scclilr t o
I)c connected with the vcry core of the meaning of lifc. Thew
Scclings vary in an infinite variety cif subtle ways, according to [lie
type
of rdga performed. rr) rhc dcgrcc of understanding it1 ~ h c .
,
listener. and according, of
) tlic spiritual development of thc
]wrformer.
o f music - harmony, melody,
O f t he four main dir
~ , l i ~ t hand
m timbre - harntctn? is ;lg.tin, as in China, virtually ncmc.\ti\tc.nt in Indian music. But, :IIICIagain as in China, this 1;lck
,
and timhrr ;II.C,
1nl)l.c. than made up for in [II;II ~ ~ l c l u d yrhythm
tl(.vr,loped t o an e x t r a o r t l i l ~ : ~ ~sophisticated
~il~
degree. Cl;ls\ic ;(l
I~itli,tnmelody and rhytlin~o l i ~ ncxcceds anything t h ; ~i3 1 1 1 l,r
I'orllltl in the mainstream ol' \Ycstcrn music.
A . :., the Western di:ttr~nicscalc with irs scvcri major t ~ r l i r - . , 1lrr.11.
11'
111
I

:lrcb; 1 1 ~ in
i
Indian music .;even basic notcs, known as .$A, It I ; , 1 i t \ ,
M A . I ) A, I I H A and N1. M'hilc the notcs of this 5 ~ . 1 1 <-11-1.
11111
I
I .
0 111r
I ) I ( r(ly:liL togt:tI~cr h a r n ~ o n i c a l l ~
thcrc
,
is a vcry r-c.l'ir~c,tl. r I I
111ij:l11 L + V ~ IsI t y science - to the melodic use nf tlli.: I ~ I I I I.lIr.
.
Moclil'iL.;lrions of the srven basic toncs 01- \/:.t),t i t 1 1 t 1 ' 1 1 . 1 1 1 1 1 . 1 1 ' .

Ia10

MUSIC IN INDIA

'1'II.E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

' 1 1 1 1 ' . '..II.II l)', 'extremely flat' and so forth produce a total of 22
I I . I ~ ~ III ~I I , . I . V ; I ~ S o r .~hrutist o the octave which are applied in Indian
I I I I I , . I ~ . [J'iing these shrtlris according t o traditional and strictly laid
I ~ I I W I Irules gives the basis of the raga system of music. From the
c.\r.tl)lished szlar-shrutis (tone-intervals). hundreds of different tone
(o~~rhinations
are organized. Each combination of tones is the basis
0 1 one raga. That is, each particular raga is based upon a particular
irlcction of sval--shru~is.The relationship and order in which these
.ones can be played during thc raga arc govcrncd by strict and
.ides. It is up to the musician to display the full range of
~ o t rc~a~ionships
c
and ornamentations of which he is capable, and to
d o so movingly and artistically, whilst nevertheless remaining
within the partic~rlarlaws of the raga.
T h e raga system grants the musician freedom of expression within
the limitations of a certai inviolable 7?/lrodp.This is a convincingly
successful solution t o thc problctn whicl~ the music of ancient
civilizations always came up agi~inst.T h e ciilcnlnl;~has already been
x-tant a force
discussed in relation t o China: sincc n111sicW ;
r, dangerous,
in altering phenomena upon carth, it woi~ltl
and perhaps even suicidal in the 1011,~r11n I
musicians to
perform whatever they wished. 7'11crrl;)l.i- I I w.15 lmpcrative for
music to be regulatsd, and definitc 1;1ws :cF~l~lir.cl
rcgiirding what
could and what could not be played. Rut i l ' r l l c . I;Iw.; mc;iot that only
certain set pieces of permitted music coulcl 131. pc-~*li)rmrd,
and n o
new compositions brought forth, then p c ~ ) ~w
l co ~ ~ l cI>rcome
l
bored
with hearing the same music over and over, ;Incl I I I V ;irr itself would
therefore decline. T h e immensely successf~~lI t ~ c l i , l n solution was,
l ~
then, to apply a system of rules which, while cff'rc 1 i ~ c . determining
what type of music was performed, and even its sl,irilIi:;l ;~tmospherc,
did not actually dictate the notes themselves. S o Ilvnil~lcis the raga
form that the same raga performed by different ;lr~i\ts,or even by
the same artists upon different occasions, can ol'l'cr t~ntirclydistinct
delights and experiences. Artistic expression : ~ n t l invention is
allowed for, then, yet the necessary barriers Il~,ovidedagainst
anarchy.
O n e tradition has it that originally there wcrc- only seven ragas,
but this may be the remnant of an ancient referrncc to the association of different ragas to the seven Cosmic Toncc. Today there are
ten basic raga forms in the north of India and 7 1 h;uic ragas in the
south, each raga form possessing its o w n particular combination of
tones. Yet ragas can differ from each other in cven the minutest of
details, and as many as 83 1 ragas have been identified in the south.
L

'I

'I
;I
I

,ll!I
'1
I,:

181

Within each raga SA is sounclc~l,11111osl( o ~ ~ t i l ~ l l ; ;IS

l l l ;I
~ clronc,
other tones are t1icrc.io1.c. I~(.;II.(I
i l l ~rc.l,~tion
10 tl~is.(Tllr
t
01' t l ~ c
lwominence of S A is thcrcforc rctninisc'c.nt 01 ~ l r i~iil~ort;tnc.c'
I)/~a?zgchung in China.) R c s i ~ l ~I IsI V clrot~r01' ,SA, O I I ~ I I O I ~is :ilso
~ i ~ ( ~ l o tIl ~
i tI~. O I I ~ ~ ,II III <~I .;I I I~re.011~1
~(.,
5c.lccted in each raga for spc~c1;11
tone as a secondarily iniport;1111111(~111clic I I O I V] ;.. I ( 11 rd/!9/IIJ\ i t \ owl1
~ - I I , I I , , I < I I . I , ' I ' l ~ i c ~111iy,l11l>(.
11;ime which statcs the rd,p'.r r111o1io11;lI
~.
Iloly
;mything from longing for ;I Iovc-tl on(.. 01. :I I I I ~ Y II II II I1nr'l,111c
;111dhope before dawn, to a mixiurc. oi icly .In(] .I tlr.c I I I 111.
t~tc.tlir;l
livc thoughts on one's life at the closr o I ~ ~ l ; l y .
In India, as in other ancient c u l t ~ ~ r csl~r.cilics,
.I.qrt.t 1 % . I r I 1 l 1 1 1 6 ~ i c .II*.I)
I 11r l 11111,111
Ilold a variety of cosmological associnrions. A r ~ t l1111tlr.1
system it is the different raga forms which I1oIc1 I I I . I I I V ( , I I111.(''(1 I..(
111usical connotations. As in China thcrc ;trc. ; i s ( ~ c . i . t li c I I I ~ S 111.1w l.r.11
. I I 1 1 1 1 ~ 11
lni~sicand time cycles: each raga is linked w i t l ~;I ~ ~ , iIt I111.11
day, and sometimes with a particular season. 1lv1.111 o t 1 . 1 ~ . 1111.
studied Indian would normally consider the playing I ;I r;!r:,/ . I I I 111.
wrong time t o be an act of gross ignorance.
Aspects of music in India still hold connotations with 1lli11!:\ . l a ,
various and diverse as the signs of the zodiac, the plancts. rlrcof the week, the seven heavens, the seasons, the elcmcnts, COIOII~.;,
voices of birds, human complexions, the sexes, tcmpcral~~cnrs,
:III(I
man's agc. However, it would be unwise to place a grc;lt dc:~l01'
trust in the objectivity of such connotations as they exist today. Not
only d o they differ betwecn the north and the south, but in both
parts they differ from the connotations indicated in the ancient
texts.I6 As Curt Sachs re1;ctes:
. I I . I ~ all

t l . 1 ~ 8 ,

Tradition is hopelessly lo\t Fvrry local school has a terminology

of its own, and when n nortllc.111Inuslaan asociates thc rag2 Sri
I love and evening twilil:Iil, , I rn'ln from the south will rchill\r
him and relate it to gr;~ntlt.ll~
. I I I L ~ the hourr bctween noon , I I I C ~
3 pn1. l 6
As t o the musical naturcs o f I llc ragas of different hours o f t l ~ r(1.1v .
onc clistinction is clear, howcvcr: 'ragas have most f l ; 1 1 \ i 1 1 1111.
quietest hours, extending from midnight t o the hot timr ol I I I C , 1 1 . 1 ~
and rc.lch a major-like c11;crncter in the cooler time hcl wc-c.~~
..I\ . I I I C I
midnight.'l6
If the most import;tnt feature of Indian I T I I I \ ~ ~1,- I 11, 111,1, , 1 1 1 .
sequcnccs, then the second is certainly its rhy!lrrtl. 01 / , I /
The td is a rhythmic cycle, cornposcd 01 . I ~ ~ . I ~ I .I I II III II~ I, I . ~t l t

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

MUSIC IN INDIA

beats, or time units, known as mZtrZ. These different rhythmic

cycles have many different numbers of beats, but the most widely
used is that comprised of sixteen mztrd', and grouped into four bars:
4-4-4-4.
Each t21 o r rhythmic cycle has its o w n name, 4-4-4-4
being tintiil. Similarly, for instance, the rhythm of ten matriis
divided into the four bars of 2-3-2-3
is jhaktiil. There are also
more complex rhythms such as vishnu~ril,which consists of five bars
containing altogether seventeen matras: 2-!-4-4-4."
The structure o f the classical rap, o r the order of the different
sections of its music, is fixed. However, rlic timc spent upon each
section is left t o the performers. In the first p;irt of the raga a great
degree of improvisation is possihlr. tl1o11!:11 ;1lwnys within the laiddown rules of the particular pircc. '1411i\ ir rhr ;,12\)rr, in which the
main traits of the raga are gnnc over ; I I I ~>~l.c.s~ril,
~
ornamented and
improvised with more liberty ~ h ; l n i!. I~cls\il>lcin the later movements, which comprise thc rrt,qr 1irr11x-I.1 1 1 11". s ) i n h of India the
raga proper forms the niilior l711lk1 1 1 111r.r - l ~ ~ i r . c :picce, but in the
north, where in somc respct,t.; 111rrr.,~rc.j:l,r..irc.r tlrvi;itions from the
music of Indian anticltlirv, rI1c o l j l r c , t - l r i r l l r v / ( , I - virritosity has led t o
~.
r + c t I ~ I I ! : I I ~ . Sotnetimes it is
the iil2pa taking o n ;I I I I O I ,I,lclrlclllnt
longer than all t h ; ~ tL~llc~ws.
I I I lwc.r:t.l,. ..l11 11 v i 111osi1
~
y is not of the
kind that has oft c11 p ~ ~ v rctl
r r I Itr ,~;rr.,lt11111c,it- I 11 I I lt(br civilizations,
but is still kept in slll)\c-rvic.ncc t o t11c r111c~01 1111- I,;~~.ticular
piece,
and allows no c l ~ i ~ ; ~ p ~10
~ c . c.titcr.
;\
I)r~l.irl~:~ l ~ imeditative,
s
introductory .;rr.tiol~,I'irsl one ;iricl tlicn ;~notll(.r.
1 1 1 1111- IJ;IS~C notes of
thc raXa :Ire Iirotrl:h~ in. the music grad~r;~lly
I l ~ ~ i l t l i ~ ~itself
!;
up. It
serves ;is :l11 cxccllcnt introduction for thc 1istc-nc.l.r o t l ~ cnotes and
flourishcs oI' which thc rags is composed. The not(..; ; ~ r played
c
in all
three oct;~vt.s;;rnd at this stage
- the rhythm is Irw I ~ r r ) ~ i o r ~ n c e d .
Nrxt come.; tht: jor. This too is improviscii. , t r ~ t l~lsuallyperformed on only c ~ n cinstrument, but it introdncl,l; I T I O ~ C ' tangibly the
elements of rhytllrn. 7'hrn the percussion instrr1111r.111
joins in and the
work 'takcs ofl' in ;I glittering array of varied cxlwc-\sion and subtle
interrelationships hctwccn the notes of the lc;ttlin!; melodic instrument or singer, ;Incl the tabla o r other pcrcllssion instrument(s).
Much dynamic importancc attaches to each first beat of the
rhythmic cycle: w h c r c ~ sthe 5oloist and the percussionist are free to
explore independent rhythmic nuances throughout the rest of the
cycle, they must be suft'icicntly skilful and rhythmically awarc
always to come togethcr oncc more precisely on each first beat.
Finally a climax o r jh& arrives. This is invnriably so brilliant when
performed by experienced musicians as t o leave one breathless with

excited concentration, yet also rcfrcshingly i~rvi~orriicdwith its

slicer, exuberant energy.
O n e o f the most distinctive and h r ; ~ ~ l r i fIccttlrrs
~ll
o I ' ~ h tllusic
r
is
1lic infinite subtle differences het wccn its nic.loJic I I ( 11 I..;. T11c
intervals of Indian music arc on ;I sn~;~ll(.r
<livi.;ion oI-III~.
\ ( . ; I I ~ r11;111 is
used for the majority of Wcstcrn work.;. 'l'lri\ r(.\rlIt\ i r l . I tt~1:11
;II.I
which is extremely rarrficd ancl c t r l r t c ~ t ~ ~ ~ lI11cli;tn
; ~ ~ i v c1n115ic;ilso
iliffers considerabl;~from that of ( ; I I ~ I I < I . W I I I . I T . I(~; ~
l ~ i ~ ~ r * \ r1111qic
r*
c.nlphasizes the single note to R ni;trkccI clc.!:tc.c., I r ~ c I i . r l l ~ I I I I ~ . *~i ~Cr - c ' s ~ c ' s
the intervals between the notes o f thr sc:tlr. '1'111. irlrc~r.v;lllic ( I i . , r . l l ~ t I. i l l
pitch between t w o notes is not ;in nvoi~lrtl,II.I.;I oI 1011r . I \ 111 I I I I I \ I
~nusicsof the world, but is actually the rcgio~i I V I ( 11 wl~ic-IIin,
;ictively used in order t o constitute a large propclrfir~n01 I II(- rllr'lc ~ i l
itself. In the performing of instruments, thc tr;lnsirir~nI I . I , I I I ( j n c rlc,lr.
ro another is often a sliding transition, producing wll;~ri\ .#I 1111t.l
illrc'*>
.l11 indescribable effect of longing o r of devotion. (Jtlivt-rs , 1 1 1 1 1 .l11
ttlanner of ornamentations also take the pitch awriy [I-I 1111 I ltr ,.I I I, I
notes of the scale.
A similar element of unique beauty is found in 1ntli;rn \ill!!irl!:
techniques. T h e notes of the song d o not have t o bc sot~tl~l(-tl
I I I ,I
fixed way but can be approached, according t o certain definite rlllrs,
I)y a sliding voice from either above o r below. Within thc slicli~t!!
note, o r glissando, the singer rests at numerous intervals for a rn:lttcr
of micro-seconds at a time. sliding rapidly up and down thc scnlr.
'I'his requires great knowledge and skill, for only those intervals
which are among the sbruti of the particular piece of music may bc
I ) ; I L I S C ~upon. I n this way an clemcnt o f freedom and an opportunity
for invention is always prescnt. Thc niood of the musician leads him
cwntinually t o create and re-crc;~tc~ l i cnrga or other work afresh; yet
~ l i cpiece itself, in its theoretic:~lI.r:tmcwork, remains unchanged.
I t is obvious then that 1ncIi;rn nus sic and the music of the Wrd;~
~lil'fcrconsiderably in thc kinclr o f moods and spiritual atmosphr.l-vs
n~Ilir.l1they invoke. Both c;In rnprcss sublimity, but each a difTc,r.rv)r
Ii,rm of sublimity; 2nd so o t l tl~roitgheach kind of feeling wlric 11
I ~ I I S ~can
C bestow. T h e t w o r~luric:altraditions lead the mind r r r 111,\v
;lion!: different paths of aw;l~-c~nuss.
And from the point of' v i r - ~ v
our prcscnt study, this is n nlost significant fact.

182

183

111

MUSIC AND INDIAN CrVILIZATION

'I'lic mrlsic of India affords us some interesting indic..trl~~ I I . I r * ! , 1 1 I IIII!'
I I I ~rcl:~tio~lshipbetwc.cn music and civiCzntioll 'I'll(. t 1 1 , t 1 1 1 0 1 1 , t 1 1 ,
Ilrtwccn Indiita and IIVestern music - the I I I ~ . ~ I I ~ . I I I \ ' , ~ I I ~ ~ ,1 .1 1 1

IH

'I'HE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I f 8,111rl. I I I ~the latter's more solid and formal structures - d o seem to

l )T. 111irrc)red in the contrasting 'inner' orientation of the Indian mind
.I 1 1 t l I 11cmore ~racticaland outwardly successful Western mind. Fur~l~rrlllore,
musical differences between the north and the south of
Illclia may also be mirrored in divergent lifestyles. Certainly the
~ ~ o p l of
e sthe two regions d o differ, and so does their music, that of
thc south being more faithful a continuation of the music of the past,
whereas the north, in both its style and its instrumentation, has been
considerably influenced by the music of Persia and Afghanistan.
That there are many poverty-stricken areas in India. and particularly in the north, is known to all. And thus it might be argued
that the music has failed to render beneficial influences upon the
people and the land. This, however, is not necessarily the case. W e
must remember that to the Hindu, Buddhist and Jainist alike, the
sole and only purpose in life is to evolve in curlrciou.vzess, little regard
being paid to the outer life. The mr~sictoo emphasizes this retrospective orientation of the soul. Whilc spiritual cvolution does not
normally preclude the possession of ni;irrri;~lwealth, it does not
require it either. From the point o f virw of the Indian devotee,
India is, then, one of the grcatcst rrpositorics o f wealth and success
in the world. For its wealth is of thc 11c;tl-I,. ~ n dits success is in the
spiritual height to which so many of i t s n;ilivc MIIIIS ;tttain. Weighed
on the scales of devotion, India is the IYin.;r
World nation, and our
own might be said t o be the land that is h;lckw;~rtl.
Thcre is one other respect in which ;I c*01111cct
ion is apparent
between the land of India and its music, ;tnil tl~isis the degree of
change, or lack of change, between the two ovrr. lill~c.The music
has altered relatively little in at least two ancl :I 11:1l t ll~ousandyears,
and so has the civilization. Even the colonix;~riol~
01 India by the
British, while bringing about certain changes in t l i c clurcr life such as
improved transport systems, had little influcnc~rsIlpon the Indian
way of thinking.
Yet what of the more recent past, and r t d ) r r / of the future?
Nowadays onc can walk for hours around somr of the cities and
villages without hearing a note of traditional rtqtts, bhujans or the
chanting of the Vcdas. There is another kind 01' 111usicto be heard,
however. During the 1960s music from the Wrst at last bcgan to
gain a significant foothold. O r to be more precise, a music began to
flourish in India during the Sixties which was not Western music
proper, but an Indian adaptation of the new Western rock 'n' rolI.
The general style of British and American 'pop' songs was imitated,
a number of Indian crooners making their appearance on the scene.

185

MUSIC IN INDIA

Sometimes Western pop was copiccl to thc cxt.t-nt o f particular

Western 'top-ten' songs being liter:1lly rc-rccordcd by Indian pcrformers, and then broadcast. In othcr cases tltc nCw sour~ilswhich
flooded the land were a hybrid of tllc. two ~,IIILIII.~!; - ;I kind o f thrccminute pop-raga about tccnagc 'Iovr - , I I I ~ I , I i L c ~ 1 1 l ~ ~ l > r i d s ,
inexpressibly ugly. Simultaneously. it1l 1 t1'li;t 11 Ii11t1 ~ I - I ~ I I I S};I-CW
I ~ ~ i~p,
its output including many of the ~ O J I - I I I I I Sc~.II ltintl of procll~crions
which had in the West helped to p ............
~ r , r ~ l \ .IrI IcI~(11111cic
.
of' lllvis I'rc-slcy
and the Beatles.
By the opening of the 1970s, Indinr~p111I I I I I S ~ CI1:ltl .;c-c.~~rrd
;I
similarly strong grip upon the listening 11;1l)i1s
I)!' 1111. ~ O I I Ic Ii t~
y -;
dwelling Indian as had the pop and rock oflh(. W r s ~11p011Wr*~trrlt
youth. And, interestingly enough, it is from this pcriotl r In w;~rcl<111:tr
the civilization and culture of India, the 1:lncI wllicll 11:ts
orij;ilis
lost in the mists of time, has at last begun t o sllow
tlisi~t
tegration. Particularly among the younger gencratiol
I r. I hr
beginnings of new hedonistic tendencies, the infiltr:
,,.~tlic.;~l
politics, and a more materialistic outlook.
Coincidence? Possibly. Yet one imagines the wisc-cyrcl, ( l . 0 ~ 5
legged yogi, looking down from the Himalayan rnount;tili slopes,
watching the social movements taking place upon the plains I~rlow.
Impassive of face, he observes the events of the passing yc;cl.s. And
what is this which, with a slight sigh, he whispers to himself? Let us
strain to hear. Is it not, perhaps, 'Asin music, so in IEfe'?

Notes
"It is interesting that the term uttaha~arefers not only to omnipresent Cosmic Sound, but is also thc name in Sanskrit for the heart
chakra. The heart chakra is one of' scven major chukrus or spiritual
centres which the yogi believes t o hc located at non-physical levels
of his form. Of the seven, the Ilcart is the most important, and
possesses the most intirnatc link with the heavens. This reminds o n c
01' the Chinese legend of Wcn of Cheng, who could perform his
wonrlcrful music only after 11c h:td reached that which he souglit ro
c.xl)rrss, which was within Itis heart. The Indian yogi-musici;t~i:~lso
I)c.li~avrsthat only by purifYiltg and expanding the heart (or ,irt,~llrrtrr)
il~nb.Lr can he bring forth the music of divinity. As 1111. Ir:lltlr
ilenotcs, the anahata chakra is considered to be the anchorin!: I ~ O I I I I
wilhin rnan of the Word of God.

'I'
.II,I.

I;ot, this rcason, some Western esotericists cl;tim III;LI

harmf1.1lin thcir effect. They are said to art ;is ' I i r . ~ r . u . ' ,

11it

I( I

L I I I ~ ~ ~

1111- 1 1 ic-lltl.;

III~,

'I'H E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I I . I I I I I ~ 1111posinga wrong vibrational matrix over the form and

1 1 , I . , I , I I . I o~fI Ithc
~ individual concerned. This applies not only to
111,

II.IIII(.\
01

11 'IS

'fatty', but even t o simple abbreviations such as 'Sam'

'Mikc'

1.
The Twentieth Century :
Jazz and the Blues - Their Nature and Origin
I,ike human nature itself, music cannot possil>ly I>r t \ c * \ ~ tr.11 I I I 1 1 %
hl,iritual direction. At times it may exhibit n mixt~rrcoi ~ ~ l r l i l t i r ~. ,~ : ~ l r l
clegrading elements, but ultimately all uses of' t o ~ l c; ~ n t l,111 I I I I I ' ~ I I . I ~
lyrics can be classified according to their spiritual d i r r r l i o ~II~>W.II.(I
~,
or downward. I t is unusual for movements in music whit:h c . o l r ~ l ~ ~ n r
truly exalted elements with those of the downward ilir.rct i l l 1 1 1 4 r
maintain their stability for long; almost always one o r 111r' OIIICIforce gains the upper hand, as can clearly be seen throitglior~t tlir
l~istoryof the art. It is actually a part of the essential naturc ()I'11ir
majority of styles and movements of music that they c i t l ~ t rl i l r
people into an awareness of beauty and sublimity, or that rhry
inculcate, subtly o r overtly, feelings of indiscipline and hedonisnl.
'To put it plainly, music tends to be vf either the darkness o r of thr
light.

TONAL ANARCHTSTS THROUGH THE AGES

I listory records that of the music o f light and that of darkness, only
o n e is usually prominent within ; I I I ~givc~zcivilization. For as long as
sublime and beautiful music prrv,iils, so does the civilization flourish
I)oth spiritually and in rnatcri;~lprosperity. Almost always, whencvt.~.
[ I I C major music of a civiliz;ttiol~Ii;is been of a more primitivr : c r ~ L l
; ~ h : ~ n d o n enature,
d
the civili7;rtio1l itself has been barbaric. nncl I I , I ~
\ ~ s ~ ~ gone
. ~ l l yinto decline, cvt'ilc~~;tlly
ceasing to remain a c i v i l i r ; ~
il I~I ~
; ~ t:11l. W e have already inclicatcd that the classical civiIi7,;lt i q ) I I,, I 14
-.. .
~ n dIndia have dcclincd together with a parallrl - o l I T ( - 1 1
decline iln their nlusic. The same could be drmnn.;t I , I I ri1 1 1 1
)f many cxher pcoples.
- . . -I' - L I I C C.;LW 0 1 ancient Greece provides a particul:lrly t l r . . ~ I. l m ~ . ~ ~ ~ ~ l ~ l r Grrck music bcgan to decline during the er:l of I'r.r.;t I{+, .. , I I I ~ I I I ~ I I
~1.14-429 BC, this being at a time whcn Grrrk r ivi117.~1u,11
. I I I ~ I rlrr

I HH

1 ) I its :~rtswere at their highest level. It was music which led the
w,ly illto degeneration.
As Greek classical music became progressively replete with cheap
i~~novation,
excessive modulation and decorative shakes, Aristophanes attempted in his plays to counter the rot with parody and
humour directed against the cheap new music. H e likened the
singers with their quivering voices tu zigzagging ants, and called the
instrumentalists ecstatic, effeminate creatures who were so easily
bent that they had to wear stays. (Their wavering music was
produced by bending certain of their instruments, such as the
strophae.) In one of Aristophanes' musical plays the Muse stages a
personal protest against the modern wave of innovators who twist
her on the rock with their inharmonic notes as they modulate. The
play was a foreboding of musical rebellion. an appeal on behalf of
the whole tradition of well-educatcd Athenian citizenship against
uncultured or alien ideas.
The appeal came too latc. Thc ncw music had already set in,
supplanting the more refinccl and disciplined classical styles. One
year later the revolution in tnrlsic manifested tangibly as a violent,
physical revolution. and rllc downfall of the elite of Athens.
Following the Grcck rcvolution of 404 BC, a deliberate blatancy
and toughness distingllisl~cdthe lyrics of the performing rebels who
came to thc forc ;IS thc musical stars of their time. One famous
manifesto hy Timor hcus of Miletus smacks strongly of the mood of
Chuck Rcrry : ~ n d of the Beatles when they sang 'Roll Over
Beethovrn', c ; ~ l l i ~fix
i ~ ; Beethovcn and Tchaikovsky to make way
for the coniin!: ol' rhythm and blues. In similar win, Timotheus
rcpudi;~trd11ir c-nrisc past (also taking care not to miss the opportunity to court I lir younger generations) :

'I'l~roughfoolishness they dcccivc.d ~ l ~ r . ~ ~ ~ \ ci lll vt oc thinking

.s
that
tl~c-rcwas no right or wrong in 11111'iic . 111.tt it wit!; 10 IJC ji~dgcci
!;oc,d or bad by the pleasure i t k:;~vr.. Ily rhril- work .Incl tllcir
r l~coriesthey infected the mnsscs wilh tllc ~irr..;un~pt
i o 1 1 t o t l~ink
w;~cnot
~l~c.mselves
adequate judpcs ... As it w,~.;,t 111. crilc-l-i~)~~
~ r ~ r ~ sbut
i c , a reputation for proniiscl~ol~>
c,lrvr.rnr\r ,11111.I -;l.)i~.it of

I do not .;in!: I hr. old things,

Bccaurr I h(. ncw are the winners.
Zeus thc yo1111gis king today:
Once it wa\ Cn )nos ruling.
GOto Hell, old cl;c~neMusic.
(One can almost im;tginc it being shouted to the accompaniment of
electric guitar.)
Decades later, in his fi~niouswork, Laws, Plato lamented the
musical revolution and its 'unmusical anarchy'. His words are as
relevant today as when first written:

189

JAZZ AND THE RL.1JF.S

T H E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

M r;~nwhile, the music contin~lcd t e , clc.t r-I i o r . t ~c. M car c. t*/r./~tcr,i

~r.~>l;~ced
true musicians. Uplifting mrlotlir\ :111tl 1 1 1 ~ . Iol.~nc*l-,
cli*.c i .
I~linrdstyles were replaced by the novrl~y-ritltlt.11,i l l - ~ ~ l l l ~ . t . l l i ~ i . ~ I
ttinds of exhibitionist 'stars'. Greek mitsic- I I ~ ~ - : I I > I ~ I- 1.11r. .~ntl
y w.15
t~ll'cminate, and the people followed suit. l lonro.,(-utr.~l~~
I-.lnlpant,and the nation waned over the years :is ;I nrilir . I I .I r~r1.c 1. .I 11c1
.I., ;I bastion of culture. Eventually Greece declinctl lot , 1 1 1 ~ 1111 I I I 11t.
..I~:ide
and the Roman Empire came to the fore.
I'hroughout the ages peoples have faced the choic-c. I i r - I M I ~ . ~ ' I I
11111sic
of the J. direction and music which encour;igcs 11lr. ( O I I
1,-~~iplation
of eternal verities. The story of their choices is i l l r i i , l l l y
I c..i1'ects the story of civilization itself. W h a t is also noticeable is I 1 1 . 1 1
w l ~ r ndestructive music appears within a civilization, it usual1 y ~1or.s
..(I vcry suddenly. Its onset comes as a veritable wave or blirxkrirg,
.1l111ost
as though by a deliberate strategy. It attains to a position o f
IM)wer and of widespread pop~daritywith the masses within just a
Irw years or decades; and its influence upon society in general is
t,ltcn similarly sudden, bringing about a swift and negative changc
1 1 1 I'hilosophies, politics, morals and lifestyles.
a.,

HOOTS
Wcbrr we to scour the globe in search of the mosr aggressively
~ ~ l ; ~ l r v o land
e n t unmistakal>ly rvil music in existence, it is more than
l i k c * l v that nothing would he fount1 :trlywhere t o surpass voodoo in
;cttributes. Still practisetl in Africa and the Caribhc;iri
~ ; ~ i c ' r . i f ' i as
~ ; ~the
l l ~ rhythmic ;lc.companiment to satanic rituals ;~ntl
r)r!:ir.;. voodoo is the quintcssrnce of tonal evil. Often irs vc.l-v
tlc.t.l;~r.c.tl purpose is to inflict harm upon other parts nT Iiff-. I t . .
~tl\ilripl(.rhythms, rathcr th;111itniting into an integrated wl~olt... I I ~ *
Iirrfclt~~i~c*J
in a certain kind of conflict with one anothrtr.
1 1 wo111cIbe quite incorrect to consider voodoo to hr '111 ~ I I I II\'(".
I
11, ,wcbver.St~ldieshave shown that the mutliple rhyt l ~ n i \ .1rt.l I t 11 111r.tl
I t 1 1 ;I I;lrgc number of percussion instruments, arcb ; I ~ . I I I . I I I ~( ' v 1 1 1 ~ 1 1 ~ ' l v
1,111~ilrx.
I t is said by some that certain very .;11I,tIr. I I I I , I I I ~ W I I I ( 11
~ l ~ r . ' i c b

(*'I

I ')(I

~ncorporatedinto voodoo rhythms, while being too subtle for

the car of even the trained Western musician to notice, are actually
the source of much of voodoo's claimed occult power. W h a t is
certain is that t o hear this music is to become instantly encompassed
by the sound of its raw, livid power. As for the evil rites t o which
the music provides the background, the author is informed by
authorities of unquestioned repute that human sacrifices continue to
occur from time t o time in both North Africa and the Caribbean.
During the slave trade, voodoo crosscd the Atlantic in the
persons of those among the blacks who practised it, and took root in
the Caribbean, as well as in the United St;~tcs.'T'hough the historical
records on the matter are sketchy, the o r i g i ~ ~ ;African-style
tl
voodoo
seems to have arrived in the West Inclics n.~orc.-or-lessintact. Laws
o f st~cli11111sic.
;is early as 1 6 1 9, but
were passed against the
(loo r i ~ t .l I(.stampctd out on the
with little effect. Prlor coulc
l l I1;it l)}1 1 8 3 5 t)lacks wc~ u l d
American mainlan d. It is I
>(-I-I~ nrtti ;I CtS of voc~ d o o inc
, ludgather in N e w O r leans t o s
; i s t shistorians are
ing the blood sacrifice oi .~ninr;ils.M ~ ~ s i r o l ~ ) ~and
in n o doubt that ~ h cd r ~ ~r l~l ynt l ~ l l ~01'\ /\l'ric.:c were carried to
America and were t l ~ t r ct r . ~ n u r ~ ~ i r.incl
~ c i lII.:III:.I;II~LI
into the style of
I
j:~r?..S ~ I ~ L
j;w%
, ( -: I I I ~ thc blues were
music which hecnnic ~ I I I , W I ;I*;
the paren ts of rock i111~11011, tllis :IISO 1iir:111\t l l . i t tlic.rc. cxists a direct
ii t l ~ rvoocioo ~ ~ ' r r n i o n i(r) s
I Ail it.;^, through jazz,
line b f dc
l 01' ~ I I Cotlicr forms ()l- 1.oc.k ~ ~ i l ~current
sic
to rock allu 1 1 1 1 1 , l ~ ~ c,111
1~ o d a y .
T l ~ cI'i rsl clcl-initr documentation of thc. cxisrcncc o f the blues
comcbs only Sson~ early during this century, l1111 c%;crlytwentiethcenrury blurs periormcrs mentioned the music :IS 11;Iving existed
i cleast
d
some dcc:ulcs e;~rlicr.The blues seem t o have hrrn I ~ r . r l o s ~ ~at
as early ;is thc 1;tttcr nineteenth century. Ensl;tvrtl pcrhaps even
more in cnnscious~.~
'Sometimes I
less than Iin body, the Negc
feel like a mor.l-~crl
css child, a long ways frorr
.nd 'Nobody
I melancholy
knows the troul7lr. I sccn'. Their songs of sac
merely served to rc.i~lfi)rcethe repressed and dcpl-crscd condition of
their physical lives. M;iny Negroes, however, adl~crcdt o the giving
of spirituals, their own p;~rticularform of praisc to G o d , which can
still be heard today. RUCthe first blues singers took the lamenting
qualities of the spiritual and transferred them in1:o song! the subjects
of which were human lovers.
From a combination of the blues and ragtime, lazz was born.
Buddy Bolden is recognizcc1 as havir~g been a t least on e of the f ~rst,
and probably the first indivi dual to p lay the m usic that later cam e to

19 1

JAZZ AND THE H 1.U ES

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

1868 ( N e w
-.
()deans at that time still maintiti~~ing
irs st;
i ~ r gthc ostcnsil~lcvoodoo centre of the Unit(-d Ct;~tc.s,I
Ily ). H I>cgan
c. Wit 11 otlicr
1)l;iying while in his twenties, during 11
~
Orlc;ins,
~liitsicians,Bolden would ninrch round 111r51 rrris t r Nrw
r x c i t i n ~ ,nc.w ;rnd
I>rrforming as he went. His music was ;I str:~n{!.:~.,
revolutionary s0m.d; and it w:rs :i i-rvol~~~ioll
wl~ic.l~
II(. litcr;~lly
c;irried into the streets. Frcquc~itlyIlc : ~ n I~is
~ l 11:11ltlw o t ~ l ~rn:~rcli
l
tllrough and stop over in thc red-ligl~r cIi51rik.1.I\,rl(lrn W;IS ?;:lit1to
1)c well acquainted with all t h c district's frnr;tlr iolr.~l)i~.~nlc.
A cornet player, Bolden led a numbcr r ) f h ~ l r x . t . \ \ ; v r - I I . I I I [ ~ \ . I ~ I I ;hs
I
rtlle result of his heavy drinking and of syphilis I\(. I l r . r , ; ~ ~ i ~i11s;tnc.
round 1906. He last performed in 1907. ;incl w;rs t l ~ r ~L I lI I ~ ~ I ~ I ~ I I I ' ~ ~
to a state institution in the June of that ye;tr. 'l'l~c.~-r
Ilr. r l ~ r - t l , i r i
1031.
This 'father' of jazz, hardly heroic o r inspiring in 11;s I I ~ I I ~ : ~ : I ~ ~ I ~ ,
.icbcmsin many respects to have set the pattern for all 11i;tr ~ : I W w.10.1 1 I
l
and r e s ~ d tin. The music he had spawncd first . I ~ ~ ( - . ~ I I I I '
:d, naturally enough, in the whorehouses of N c w I)I.II*;~II\.
lere it spread to the brothels of other cities, and thcnc~c.,c rvc.r,
trrnc, transferred t o the bars and dance halls.
The first actual appearances of the printed word 'jazz' wcrc in
1 9 17. The Hearst newspapers of 2 1 January. 1917, co~itaincdI his
lltstice in the column of one Damon Runyan :
Irr. tcrmed 'jazz'. Bolden was born in New Orlcans in

New York. Jan 20. - A Broadway cafe announces, as somerhing

new to the big Bright Asle, the importation from the West of a
syncopated riot known as a J;4s R;lrld.

5 August of the same year :in ;irt~clc~ p p e a r e dby Mralter K i n g l c y

)f the New York Sun which wem\ to ~ndicatethat already the music
11.itl \pread and stirred up :in Intcrcst The artlcle was headlinrd
( )n

'M'l~c.ncecomes jass? Facts f r o m lhc great authority on the suhjc~.~',

continued:

i ~ ~ t l

V,~riouslyspelled Jas, J;ls.;, Jasz, and J a s n . T h e word ic Alr i t ,111

igin. It is commnn i ) n thc Gold Coast of Afric;i ;~nclr r b I llr
1 1 1 1 1 1 cbrland of the C a p
stle ...

III

' I ' l ~ i r u ~these

h
are among tne nrst reports of jazz in 111~ I I I .I 11f. I l r r l h . l ~ I.,
l( tw11 t o h . ~ v rbeen established in a number nf \ I : I ~ 111l r r l I I I ' 1 I I
11.11:1I ~ I C, ~ n dthe blues had paved the way 1'1 11 I III-,.cl{*r.r.lr
)1~~~~1:
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'I'HE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

JAZZ AND THE BI,UF,S

01' I000 girls in the last two years to jazz music.

1.cntral core of the repertoire pumped ovrr thr ;lirw;~vcstoday. Yet it

began decades ago. As is the casc ~od;ry,lorir~,g,;ir,cording to the
singers, seemed t o be only one half nf ;I n ; ~ t ~ ~ oscill;~iing
r:~ll~
I l ~ other
c
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I
I l ~ 1.111
r

C ;ills

i11 small

towns, as well as in the big cities, in poor homes

,11111 rich homes, are victims of the weird, insidious, neurotic music
I l l ; ~ taccompanies modern dancing

..."

Writing a few years later, the composer, poet and esotericist, Cyril
Scott, had this to say:
After the dissemination of Jazz, which was definitely 'put
through' by the Dark Forces, a very marked decline in sexual
morals became noticeable. Whereas at one time women were
content with decorous flirtations, a vast number of them are now
constantly ~ r e o c c u ~ i ewith
d the search for erotic adventures, and
have thus turned sexual passion into a species of hobby. Now, it
is just this over-emphasis of the scx-nature, this wrong attitude
towards it, for which Jazz-music has hccn responsible. The
orgiastic element of its syncopated rllyti~rn,entirely divorced
from any more cx;tllcrl rlnlsic;~l contcnr, l)roduccd a hyperexcitement of thc ncarvc*\, I I I L ~ Ioc~sc~ic~cl
I hc powers of self-control.
It gave rise to ;I
r~xllil;ar;~tion,
;I l'it~cirior~s
endurance, an
insatiability rrsull ill!: i l l ,I tlrlr~rrious v/otirl :111tl I~liysical
reaction.
Whereas the o l t l I;~zliionrrl nirlodior~sil:~r~rr-rn~~sic.
inspired the
gentler scntinir~ir:;,];lzx, with its ;irr;ly #)l' 11:11~11, car-splitting
percussio~~-i~l:.~~~~~ll~c.llts
i~~ll;i~ni*d,
inioxicn~ccl:tnrl I>nrt;ilized,thus
causing ;i srr-1);tc.k i l l Man's nature towards 111r instincts of his
racial chil Jlic )c )cl. For Jazz-music at its lirigllr very closely
rcscmhlril thr music of primitive savages. A i111~1llc.r
result of it
was to hr seen in that love of sensationalism wliich I~asso greatly
incrrnsctl. As ,l;r/:/. itself was markedly sensation;tl, IIIC public has
incrr;tsingly come to demand 'thrills' in tllc form of 'crook
dram;ts' ;lncl I)l;tys, the only dramatic intcrtqt of which is connected wit11 c r i ~ ~mystery
~c,
and brutality. This nlso itpplies to sensational fiction: f;)rthe sale and output of this typc is prodigious.'
f , t l z c b

'MYDADDY ROCKS ME WITH ONE STEADY ROLL'

(- THE LYRICAL CONTENT OF THE BLUES)
The perverse elements 01' ihc musical tones of j a n had their parallel
in the lyrics of the majority of Idues songs. For one thing. the subject
matter and direction of consc.iousness contained within the blues
was as a rule of a low and suffocatingly narrow-minded nature. The
theme of human love in its il~l~erfect
aspects - betrayal, mistrust,
physical love devoid of the higher feelings, and so on - is still the

19 1

;l11

Leave you, 01' maid,

gonna leave you, 01' maid.
Look out Ju-li', 01' maid,
look out Ju-li', 01' maid.
Or, if the protagonist of the song decidrd t o
clid so under his own conditions:

sl;ly,

111.

111.vr.1
I ll~.lt.-,\

I'm gonna buy me a bulldog, watch you whilc you slrc.1,.

(I said I'm gonna buy me a bulldog, watch you whilc yc ) I I \ l r . r , l l

Just to keep those men from making their early mornin' c1.c.r.p.
More sinister themes were also common. But few spe~i.tli7(.tI111
rhcm more than Robert Johnson, the 'King of the Dcltn I3l11t.\'.
Ilorn in 1914, Johnson's lyrics dealt with, as Frank Tirro ~ I I I , i l ,
'rhree recurring themes: the impermanence of human relation\hlp.;.
incessant wandering, and irrational terrors. His blur5 :ire 4 ~ 1 1
rl~roughwith dark foreboding . . ."l One Johnson song, 'MCand t l i v
I lCvil Blues' has thew typical lyrics:
Early this morning when you knocked upon my door
Early this morning when you knocked upon my door
And I said, 'Hello Satan. I belirvc it's time t o go.'
M e and the devil was walking sidc by side
Me and the devil was willking sidc by side
And I'm going to beat my wom;tn until I get satisfied.
. . . You may bury my bocly clown by the highwayside,
So my old evil spirit can gcr Greyhound bus and ride.

I ~ ) I I I ~ ~ died
~ O I ~ in 1938 or 1039. having been either poisc,nr.tl I,y I
wcIlll,ln or shot by her icnlous husband. (Nobody i4 I I I I I I ~ . d a ~ ~ ~ r .
wl~ic11
( )!I
most common subjects was sexual dc-si~c. I ) I I V I I I I I I V
-.III!:('I\
~cllosynuaticturns of phrase, howevcr, rllr .I{ 111.11 1 1 1 1 . . 1 1 1 1 1 1 ~ ~ ~ .
,!I 111r
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I,.

JAZZ AND 'I'I-I 1' H I , I I I

'1'1 I l i SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

-l1\

111

) l I l ~ cRoosevelt era. This period of jazz is remarkably

h1011s;~rrat
therefore points our

hysteria to the phenomena associated with the

I I I C ' ~ O S '70s
,
and '80s:
;IS I I I ~ S S

)l.c,hcstras became as keenly supported as football teams, and

ll~cirindividual stars as admircd as boxing champions. Audiences
were numbered in thousands, Hollywood beckoned t o the more
successful bandleaders, magazines conducted annual popularity
polls evoking response from people all over America. Police had
sometimes to be called out to control adoring crowds, and the
profits soared into five figures, then six, then seven. Jazz now
enjoyed the
prestige of its first millionaires .. .
Although Louis Armstrong had by now succumbed to the
fleshpots of Hollywood, and his influence as a developing
musician was on the wanc, his effectiveness as a player remained
cnormous. l 9

THE EFFECTS OF THE MUSIC

Jazz had now arrived in carncst. Its ;~tihcrcntswere sufficiently dcsensitized to be unaware and ignorant c-jf its continuing effect upon
them. But to the sensitized mind thc h;irsli rhythms of jazz were
brutalizing to the consciousness. O n t h c physic;~llcvcl the rhythms
of jazz, like their parcnt sounds of Afiic:~, literally forced the
listeners to d o something rhythmic with their linlhs. The faster the
trmpo, the more the emotional tension creatrd. /Is for meter, Alice
Monsarrat has commented that :
The normal easy meter . .. like that of a w:t117, is 1-2-3, 1-2-3,
1-2-3-4.
But with 111c advent of the
or a fox trot 1-2-3-4.
twcnticth century, the mcters began to gallop I>rokenlystirrup to
stirr~ipwith harmonic dissonance and discc~rdi l l the melodic line
... the nittcr began t o appcar sorncll~ing likc this:
1 & 2 & 3 4 1 & 2 & 3 4 ...
A broken metcr in the trcble, played ovcr :In insistently regular
beat in the left h;ind. with gradually increasing rapidity almost to
the point of frcnzy . . . is capablc of producing the identical disintegrating and almost l ~ ~ s t e r i ceffect
al
on an ~ r ~ a n i s m . ' ~
M a n is, of course, essenti~lly a rhythmical being. Respiration,
heartbeat, speech, gait and so forth: all form a part of the unified set
of rhythms, great and small, which is man. Even the cerebral
hemisphcres are in a constant state of rhythmical activity. Alice

I Ii;11 i l

. . . is precisely at this poinl rll:cl 1 0 , k ' 1 1 1011 ,11111 11111(~11oi

rl~odernmusic becomes pntct~ti.1 l l v t l . r ~ ~ ~ :I ,H-I ~- , ' I ' I I I ~ , 1.. 1 > ~ C ; I I I . ; ~ .10.
111;tintaina sense of well-bcing , 1 1 1 ~ 1 11111*!11.;11i 0 1 1 , 1 1 I * . I " ; ? ~ .i I, ~~lII11.11
tli;in is not subjected too nirlcl~1 0 ; I I I I~ l l v l I I I I I , . 1 1 1 11 I I I .I(.(ortl ~ l i l l l
l~isnatural bodily rhyhtns.
1 1 i c b

'.'

\ V i ~ h the coming of ja7.~, l x ~ l s : ~ t i:cr~tl

c ~ ~ ~\ ~ T I I . I D \ L I I I I I I I I ~ I Y ; I I I I [ .
Ivonounced in music as ncvcr I>rt;)t-c.S ~ I I L , ~I ' IV ~
J . I I I l ~ r . . t ~t ,.lit
I 111.1,
I * I \ the off-beat in 414 timc. I t is a dc.lihrl.;~lr
, 1 1 1 r 1 1 1 1 1 1 r , t l ~ l ~ 11.11.1
r + 01.
I I I I . musician t o disrupt the evcn cliaractcr. I )I- I l i \ ~ , l 1 ~1 1 1y1 1 '1'111.1.111.1.1
(11 j;lzz syncopation is primarily sexual : r hC hr;rl v ) 1 1 1 r I 1 ( , W I 1rC.111
ivir h the rhythm of sexualit) In maln and wo n1;Il~.I l l l I . 1 1 . 1 1 I l . 1 r l 1 1 , l .
~r.lr.ntlesspulsation also has a similar effrct. Wl11.n ~ I I ~ ~ , . I I I I I .I1I1 i ~ 1
.&yncopationarc the rhythmic foundations of the lnu.;ic . I I . I (1.111,
II;III, the movements of the dancers can invariably he src.rl t o I)rt r,lncvvry sensual and oriented around the loins. Such r l ~ ~ l l ~ .lI (nI zI I . I I I ~
\~osscssthe capacity to force the subtle energica I I
1111tl~
, l 1 lwnward into this rcgion of the anatomy, thereforc incrc.;~~in!:
I II(.
n*r~~pouring
into the bloodstream of sexual hormones.
Once such biochemical and more subtle forces havc hecome- con.
rr~tratedin the loins, they must find some manner of expression.
'l'l~is may comc through sexual activity shortly afterwards; or
~ l ~ l ~ ) ua gmore
h
general tendcncy during everyday life and during
I I ~ (cnsuing
.
days for thc pcrson to lack control ovcr the sexual
1111~~1lscs.
I t is not unknown for rhosc who are the chief produccrs OI
I llc.sc rhythms, the dntmrr
modern music, to actually h a v ~
11 hours c)f non-Stop drumming."'
11111sic-induced
orgasms aftc
Iron1 tht shaman in his incessant
I 'I 1cl;ly's drummer differs 13
I~i~:tting
out of a rhythm. ;iritl likc,wisc often enters into a form cot'
I I-.I llcr while performing.
fi:~slierin this book we c o ~ ~ ~ ~ r ~onc ~music
i t c das a communic;~~os
These comments tI1rt rw
.I I 1, I nlultiplier of states of cr ll~xcio~~sness.
L I ~ O I I 11ic rise of virtuosoship a n d 01 . I l r
~ r r ~ ~ . ~ i ~ l t .significance
l-;~ble
1 1 1 1 1 r - . ~ \ c . ~ l degree of solo-irnp~x)visationin jazz. From tilt. l 'j,'o*.
~ I I I W , I I . I ~iazz
.;
audiences, whcrl~c*rin bars or by the sidc o r . I I-(.II ) I $ 1
:act and insistent r c n ~ li ic ~1 7 1 I I I I l ~ r
111.1 V I - S . Mrerc exF)osed to :
,ver bdore. T h e IoII!;,
~ I I I ~ 8 JI I V I ~ l. ~ ~
1 1 1 1 1 1 ~< , I , I I[ c of th e perform
..l
..I 1 1 1 1 I > I - ( " ; ~ I I C C U a highly prcclbr auil detailed strcam 01' 1 I i l l L , l 1 1 I I I ~ . I I I . ~ . ~ .
\,V111
I ) I . I I ~:LII~ Ihigher
I~
laws of art 01 of submissi11111 1 1 , I III,I:II,.I
I ~ I , I I I Ilis own self-will, tl1c jazz sc)loist roamctl :I\ 1 1 1 c ' ' l 1 1 1 ~ r a l ' I I I ~ I ~ , .
.I(

'

$1ILI

'I'HE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

1 1 1 1 11 I 111 I ) I I , ~ I ILIIC fog-bound and sociologically-treacherous valleys of

I I I ~ . ~l l .o Il yI I;tnd
~ anarchy. T o the sensitized mind, every such solo L ~ I I ~ I I I I Irxception
I
displays one or more of the following undesir.I 1111.traits : sensuality, physical over-excitement, despair, human
~l~oodiness,
lethargy, selfishness, narrow-mindedness, mental disinlrgr;ition, pride, egocentricity, self-assertion and rebellion. That
some will consider the list controversial is in itself symbolic of the
sad dilemma which the music poses to our society. For to the
unspoiled and pristine mind, the truth of the list will be self-evident;
yet the individual who has succumbed to this music will already
have forsaken, though he will know it not, his capacity to view the
issue objectively.

OFFSPRINGS OF THE JAZZ RHYTHM:INTO THE ERA

OF PROTO-ROCK
O n the commercial front the music now rc;tched a stage which, in
retrospect, can be seen to have becn thc btcpping-stone between
black music and the rock; and roll
vas to come. This stage
was the flourishing of 1rhythm :I
;, :i music form which
resulted from largely econlornic cou
I I I order to be audible in
clubs and bars, the blucs singers hnil 1,c.c-n j;l)i~r!: clcctric, amplifying
their music; while the decline in thc 1 7 0 1 1 u l , ~i r ~y 01' I;trgc 'swing' jazz
bands had forced them to reduce thcinsclvrs i l l .;i;l.c. Rhythm and
blues emergcd as a hybrid of the two.' At f'irsr c ~ r l l I>lackslistened
to it. It became their most popular forni of rrilrsic. Again the
subject matter was infidelity, perversion, drink ; i l l c l c.rime; again the
mood was one of bewildcrrnent and deprrssion; itgain the tones
were dissonant. and sometimes of a quite frcnxic*tl1(.111po.
The new genre brought forth its own stars: (ol~nnyOtis, Nat
King Cole, Julia Lee, B. B. King and innurnrr;ll)l'c.o ~ l ~ c rJulia
s . Lee
'sang salacious blues in sleezy gin mills', whilc CI'yl~onicHarris was
'a lord of exccss' who 'lived a life of complete nl;lylic~n... shouting
the blues with a wild and hard-driving bo;lsll~llness'. Muddy
Waters, the Chic.ago bluesman, and John Lrr I looker of Detroit
(one is remindcd of thc ancient concept of t l ~ cname bring the
keynote of the i1111c.rm;in . . . !) each 'cut omino\~sfigures onstage,
full of menace and prowling malevolence'. Crcil Grant, who came
from Nashville, went ovcr thc airwaves with a sex message still not
comprehended by the wllitc broadcasters when he made the 1 9 5 0
hit 'We're Gonna Rock' ( p r o ~ n ~ tto
l ydie a few months later)."
Gradually. rhythm and blues began finding a white market.
Simultaneously, several other strands came together which were

'

JAZZ AND THE BLUES

201

clrstined to result in the rock revolution. The most significant of

tllrse was the popularization of American country music. By retainI I I ~only
; the more decadent subject matter of' country music, and by
I~~aing
this with the more racy, blitck-stylr o f 171.;11,i.oilntry niusic
I,c.c;tme country-boogie, which in turn led I ( ) rock:il )illy.
I)opularized country music's most p r o ~ n i ~ ~c.xl)onznt
r-~ll
wits I-l;tnk
siinplc
Williams. The tonal side of Willianis' ~ ~ i u s w.ts
i c rrl;~tivc-l~
. ~ n drelaxed, yet his lyrics oncc more rrllec~ctlr l ~ : i l s,lrllr rllorr;tl,
~v.ssimisticoutlook that we have alrc.ady ~~nc~or~nrr.r.c-~l,
;l1111 wl~icll
w;~ssoon to take root in rock. S o farni1i;tr ;trr wc. t o t l . ~ y will1 rlicI liuessant playing in the background of s o n p ;tlx jut c~~,yi~lg,
t lvsc II;I I ion, betrayal and loneliness that it is almost difl'it.ult 10rc ti)c.~is
c IIII.
I'crspective into a more objective viewpoint. Yet only I'rolti sllc 11 ,I
viewpoint can it be realized that the communicatiorl OS suc.11s~;~tc.s
OS
I onsciousness to millions of young listeners must withorrt ilo\ll)~I)(.
I I ) the detriment of future society.
Among Williams' hits were 'I'm So Lonesomc 1 Co111i1(
' I<;lrnblingMan', 'Cold Cold Heart', 'Take These Chains ];I.( I I I I M y
I lrart' and 'Weary Blues'. But the string of hits was not 1 1 )
c lmtinue. Almost as though the Power which guides the dcsli~iy01
Ill;in had a symbolic message to communicate to us all, Willi;~tr~\
11c-vcrreached the age of 30. O n 1 January, 195 3, he died of ;l hr;~rr
,111;tckin the back of his chauffeur-driven Cadillac. His Istcs~
N ~ ~ m b e1r hit was still in the charts: 'I'll Never Get Out of 'I'his
World Alive'.
'l'he scene, however, was now set.
Combining the rhythmic structures of rhythm and blues with
c.lrn~entsof country and western music, Bill Haley and the Comets
wrrr the first t o realize the enornmous tonal power and commercial
lu)s~ibilitiesof what was to l~cconirknown as rock 'n' roll. 'Rock
/\l,~jund the Clock' was rrlc;~.;rJ in 1 9 j 4 , and soon becamc.
111c orporated into the film B1trrkhoat.d Jungle (which dealt with thr
..~~l)ic.r.tof juvenile delinqi~cncy).
The song went on to sell ovc.~.2 0
r 1 1 1 l l l c 1 1 1 discs. The rest is 11is1o1.y.
'1'1 11; MODERN ERA
J.I>.I.I I I i l ~ emeantime, dicl not attempt to compere wirll r l ~ r . * b t ~ l I r I t , t l
I ~ ~ I I I . I I , ~ I of the new rock music. O n the cnntr:iry , I 11r ! p t . ~ ~ ~
11141
I I . I I ( . . I I I ' ~ ~ increasingly into a stance of ultrn-in~l.llr-~
I I I . I ~ I111
r q.t!:,:~-~..~ccd
introspection which was by no mc;lllq.I I I ~ . ~ . III I I I II I
'11c.w I I I I I < ~ C . ' of 1 1 1 ~'~rrious'musical stream. I ; I I I I I I t l ~ i 1 1 , 1 0 1 1 1 1 1
I I I V I I I . I I I . I ~ . I ~1loll-ic1r;ilist
ISI.
;llldirn~('~,1 1 1 ~
I
1

14 1

111

(\

11111- 111

111

1111

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

. l ~ ~ . l

JAZZ A N D THE H1,lJES

rll C-i~tu:tliz:~tion
of jazz as introduced by Miles Davis and others
w.15; I I I intriguing one. Yet from the higher perspective, the resultant
I I I I I S ~ was
C
really no less questionable than its predecessors.
Since this was now 'jazz for the thinking man' so t o speak, the
opportunities for cross-fertilization between jazz and other
materialistically intellectualized genres were broader. Many of the
new jazz musicians had at least a working familiarity with the
theories and sounds of the 'new music'. And for their part, the contemporary avant-garde became y a more interested in the musical
elements of jazz. Later, during the late sixties and early seventies,
when rock also reached a stage of 'intellectualization', a similar
cross-fertilization became apparent between jazz and rock.
Jazz itself, however, was to discover that increased introspection
meant a decreased market. As had earlier been the case among the
'new musicians', the more intellectual jazz artists had trouble in combining their subjectivity with an objective perspective of what was
or was not valid as art. Soon enough, jazz arrived at its 'modern'
.
.
'
stage. Now, jus
e casc of a few un planned s,plashes of paint
on a canvas, ar
n l ) u u of a saxophone or Iodd whine of a
trumpet was in
y scourcd for its meaning by an avid but
dwindling body o r c~evotccs,then invariably to be hailed as an
expression of genius. Thc saxophonist, Ornette Coleman,
proclaimed his tl~c~ory
t.l~;~t
the performer should be free to create any
sound at ;my ,t:ivc.l~tinic, and went on to perform accordingly, as
was only tiio r v i d e l ~from
~ the result. As Bcnny Green, the writer on
ja72, aptly p111i t : 'Colcman's dialectics would be more to the point if
hc ancl his fi)llowcrs were each satisfied t o play alone in a room.'19
Wc 1i;tvr not(d in earlier chapters that the ancients sought to
trcxcl ; I I I , I I I i < , path which combined elements of individual
frccdom with c.crt:iil~definite restraints. Plato was only one of the
carliesr ol' III(. 1n:irly commentators who havc pointed out, down
through thc ccnc~~ric-S,
that the only freedom which is aesthetically
viable in ;irt is ;I I'rccdom married to self-discipline. Otherwise
freedom beconlrs :I recipe for anarchy. And it is in search of evergreater excesses OS tllc I:~ttcrthat most jazz musicians have directed
themselves over thc I;~sttl~irtyyears.
The author is strongly rcrninded of an essay on music therapy
written by Howard I l ;~llsonin the 1940s, in which Hanson
displayed an acute prophetic insight into what the music he heard
around him would mean for tllc future. Hanson wrote.

I ~ r ~ ~ ~ , ~will
t ~ , be
i r i if
i ) thc
~ i prcscSntschool of 'hor j:~x./'continucs to
It.\1r.lol~w;~bated.Much of it is cr;Iss, r;nlcorls :tticI ~ o n ~ ~ ~ i o n ~ l ; i c c
~ t t t l to11Ic1 be dismissed without comment if' i t wcrr not f'r~rthe
1 . 1 1 I i o whcreby, hour aftcr hour, night ;~f'trri~i~:ht,
Arncrican
Iblrtnr.; :trc flooded with vast qu;bn~itirsof tl~is~l~.~ti*ri;il,
to which
it 111ly.
. I I tl,~np;~niment
our youngsters dilncr, pl:~y i t 1 1
l711t if
I'~.r.ll;l~>s
they have developcrt ; ~ nimmunity t o it-+
I I I ~ .li;~vc
~
not, and if the niass production of this .111r,1l t l r . ~ ~ jis: Ilot
WC may find ourselves :I n;~rinno I ' n c . ~ l ~ ow~ li t~~
11i ~~c.vc.11
i111.1.tilc~1,
1111. >kill of the psychiatrist may br h;~rd
prrsscd I O( ~ ~ r c . . " '

1111

is-I

I hesitate to think

... of what the effect of musi~c upon the

11, irnl
W music' 1h r i t l ~r l ~ c11
with our comparison of the 'ne~
Il~tli;~
z
and
the
classit,;~l
( :IIIII:I.
;L comparison between jaz
)
I l h 01'
~d
spiritu.
natures
ar
I , vi-;~ls
the same totally opposite
111,-two. Should it be the case that music has no effect 11pi1r1I I I , I I I .
(I11.nrl~ilsicof the downward direction would be all wc-ll ;ultl gootl 1 1 1 1 1 our discourse thus far seems t o indicate strongly th;~tthis is I I I ~ I
I 1 1 1 - c.;tse.
What is more, the statements of the wise of long ago rcg;~riling
111,.;tl)ility of music to influence life patterns was only a part nf their
111.licfabout the power of music. Music and sound, they statrd,
I or~ld
also affect matter itself. Audible sound, as an earthly vessel for
III(. universal OM, wielded a great energy. An energy which, accorI I I I I ~ to the kind of music played, could create, preserve or destroy
1.vc.n material, inanimate conditions. It is a long-standing belief of
111resoteric schools that in the distant past there once existed former
.iJvanced civilizations not dissimilar to our own, but which are lost
1 0 historical record. These are sitid to Elave been destroyed by
I'l~ysicalcataclysms which were c: u~sed,in e,ach case, largely through
tllc continued misuse of sound ; ~ nI rrhythm. Is there any truth behind
huch beliefs, and does music acto;tlly contain such a power t o affect
matter? If so, then the phcni)mcna of jazz, rock, and other such
musics - including, perhaps, thr vrry allowance of their presence in
o i ~ rniidst - would most urgently necd to be looked at afresh.
,\a.

ABOUT ROCK
In this book we have touchrd upon rock here and therc olily 111
passing, one reason being that the subject of this m~~sic
. t l ~ t l 11%.
wcietary effects is so vast as would require a volunir in it\c.ll. I I I
,~ddition.it has been useful to deal with j a u sincc ~ ; I w . . I 1).\1i-111 ( 1 1
rock. displays its voodoo origins more blatentlv: ,111011
11r.i.11
11scfu1to discuss the 'new music' since its prola)nc.lit6.. I , v w~ll~tl!:
11.16,

next

.'Ib.1

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

. I I I J.~l)lcto

their inner philosophies and aesthetic standmore (:learly and intellectually than can the average rock
.irtist . Yet sufj6ce it to say that all that we have commented on the
new music' or on jazz is at least doubly true of all rock music.
I
ROCK,
properly understood, is music warfare waged upon an
unsuspecting society by guitar-gunners who are frequently fdly
aware of what they are about.
More than any other form of the misuse of sound, ~t is rock with
which we must deal today. There is no question but that rock is
intimately related t o the kind of state of consciousness found in vast
numbers of young people - young people who are to be the
'mature' adults of the future world. Rock has unquestionably
affected the philosophy and lifestyle of millions. It is a global
phenomenon; a pounding, pounding, destructive beat which is heard
from America and Western Europe to Africa and Asia. Its effect
upon the soul is to make nigh-impossible the true inner silence and
peace necessary for the contemplation of eternal verities. Its 'fans'
are addicted, though they know it not, to the 'feelgood',
. ,egocentricity-enhancing, para-hypnotlc ei fects of its insistent beat.
H o w necessary it is in this age for some to have the courage to be the
<
out from the
ones who are 'different', and to. > c ~ L ~ Lthemselves
pack who long ago sold their lives and personalities to this sound
and the anti-Aquarian culture which has sprung up around it !
I adamantly bclieve that rock in all of its forms is a critical
problenl which our civilization must get to grips with in some
gcnuincly ciScctive way, and without delay, it if wishes long to
survivr.
) i l l [S

"
"
.
.
*
+
c

6.
Assessment :
Tllr Physics of the OM
[h(,bcginnit~~~
rcJ[i\Urahman, with whom was rbr Worrl. ,.In'/ tkt
~I'IJ)Y/is Brahm~itl.- Vedas
It/

rhr

beginnit% I C I ~ I J the Word, and the W o r d was with God, rlnrl

Word was God. - Gospel according to St John.

111rreligions of East and West so strikingly agree: in the hegin~iin~;

rlic Word. But exactly what was - or, to use the Prcsetz~tvnrc of
1 1 1 1 . Vt+dicquotation, is - the Word? The above scriptures dcscribc i~
I , , I I ~ - I I I R a part of God, or Brahman. Further, the quotation from thc.
11".11ing
of the gospel of St John continues, pregnant with meaning:
\.l

l+

I,,

same (the Word) was in the beginning with God. A

ll things
wcrc made by him; and without him was not any thing made
I 11:1t was made.

'I'll(*

\t'r have, in these famous, deeply mystical lines from St John, then,

Note

"Thc u\i. of vcilcd lyrics so that only certain sectors of society and
~
the songs are about, is also a widespread
not others ~ c . , i l iwhat
practicc in rr~oclcrnrock. In rock music both clrug and sexual symbolism arc ircqucntly to be heard.

:inother example of thc universal ancient belief that God, or a

Illvine Being, created the univcrsr, and did so by means of a
v~l)r;ctoryemanation. This sacred vihration is usually referred to in
I - . l l , l y Christian texts as the Word ([his meaning of the term having
I1r.r.n forgotten or overlooked I)y most Christians today). In
I l~riduismthe divine vibration is. ;is we have seen, more usually
irl;.rrccl to as OM. Neverthclcss, the W o r d and the OM are onc
.11nd thc same thing. Morcovc.~,a great variety of other tcrnm
,.~c.rntningfrom the different cultures of ancient times also rcfrr ro
I llis same universal, eternal phenomenon. Cosmic Sound, in fi~crtl
nairll the essence of Consciousness, has been known v;~ricr~~sly
A l l M, A M N , A M E N , AMEEN, O M E N , OMON. 1 A M. l l l l .
l1AHUVAH, the Logos, the Lost Word, and by o111r1-rl;rmi-;
Ilc.\idcs.
y5.r

'I

I(,

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I I I I H I I ' previous 'assessment' chapter, 'Mlusic, M a n and Society1,

r 111, ~ k c dat one half of the ancients' claims regarding the power of
11111sic.
- that music affects physical health, character, and society at
I;trgc - and found that the ancients' claims seemed fully justified.
Yet the power of music and of sound extended a!so to inanimate
matter. I n fact, the OM was the origin and cause of all matter in the
universe. Granted, the concept of the OM seems far removed from
our everyday life and experience; and at first sight it appears t o bear
no relation whatever to what modern science has to tell us about the
origin and nature of matter. But is this really the casei Perhaps we
need to examine the subject of the OM in more detail.

'Thus let it be done! Let the emptiness bc fillcd! Lct tllr w;ttrr
recede and make a void, let the carth' ;11yxb;ir;incl
olitl;
Ict it be done. Thus they spokc ... Thcn tlic c;trth v
ad I l y
t hey
hem. So it was, in truth, that the,y crc;~tccl
I tllr c.;~rtl
said, and instantly it was madc.

)f the creation of the first human beings wr. .II.I- I , b l t l I 11.11. " l ' l ~ t . ~
wrre not born of woman . Only hy n ~iiir:~'
It-, l)y I I I ~ + . I I I \ 01
111c;intationwere they created and rnitdr hy 11ir (:rr.~rol.,111t. M . I ~ c I ,
I llc Forefathers, Tepeu and Gucumatz.'
(

..

'AND GOD SAID

OM AND THE U N I T Y OF CREATIOFr7 MYTHS

Music is the harmonious voice ol+" r-""r+;ca..m r r v r r ; an echo a t h e invisible
world; one note of a divine concord which the entire universe is
destined one day to sound. - Mazzini
O f one thing
" we can be certain from the outsct. The idea of a divine
vibration being behind the cause nf rvcrything was no arbitrary,
idiosyncratic concept of only onc peoplc. Tllc same theory of
cosmogenesis is discovered in pre-rnodcrn ctllt~trcswith surprising
regularity. Often the idea is clothed in tlic rr;ippings of oversimplification or of superstition; but alwitys r11r. basic similarity
remains. Sometimes reference is to the pr11rr;il creation of all
substance and all life by the One Sound. At o1l1r.r times there are
more precise references to the creator-god fornii~~!;cach object and
each living creature by means of a succession oC tlivc.rsified 'words'.
The Surnerians believed the gods to havc crc;ucd the universe
with their 'mighty, commands'. Similarly, life ancl rn:tttcr was created
through a sacred word or words spoken by thc f'irst god or gods in
the myths of the Hebrews, the Celts, the Chintsr, the Egyptians,
the American Indians and the Quechua May;i. Ilcscribed in more
analytical tcrms, the same idea appears again in the Pythagorean
concept of the Harmony of the Spheres. which concept retained
considerable influence through the earIy Christian and Medieval
eras. (Though first taught in Greece by Pythasoras, the concept of
the Harmony of the Spheres seems to have stemmed originally from
Pythagoras' own many years of travel and discipleship in Egypt and
other Middle Eastern regions.)
counts o~f the
In the Popol-Vuh, containing the crc
m the ear-th by
Quechua Maya, the gods Tepeu and Gucu
their commands :

207

...'

) i ~very
r
familiarity with the account of the Crr;ction p r t - q i . w1lI1i11
~~~
~ l l cdominant religion of our own culture can blind us t o I llr I ~ . I I I I , I
lion that in Genesis too the Creation is manifcsrcd II~I.OII,:II 1111.
.~gcncyof sound. G o d is describcd as accomplishing c;ic.h \ I I , L c.sa.ivcIjliase of the Creation with h k spoken words. The zc~ordiI ~ ) ~ ~ N I U ~ I V , \
m m to enact the Creation:
(

And God said. Let there be light: and there was light.
. .. And God said, Let the waters under the hcavrn I)(.
gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appcxr:
and it was so.
.. . And God said. Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb
yielding seed, and the frult-trce yielding fruit after his k ~ n d ,
whose seed is in itself, lipon the carth: and it was so.

I I I the same manner, according t o G cnesls, W ere created heaven and

thje sun, the moon and the st ara, fish, fowl and every living
c7-eature. God is not described ;IS creating these with his silent
rhoughts or desires alone; ncithn ~lncshc fashion the universe with
rnighty hands from on high. Nf),
hr .I/JCLZ~.T, describing what should
~~i;irlif~~st,
and manifest it dncs. 'l'lic-rc seems t o be a strong hint to 11s
hcse t h ~ the
t text contains ;I ~lrrpcrand more than merely littr:~l
~licaning.
Indr.cJ, much of Gencsis miist
:n allegorically r n I I(.
correctly understood. T h c written w v l u l l l g of the accoun~ (..I 11 IN.
1.I
merely a means of - renclerin g the process and thc. .let r 11 I 11,.
intelligib~ l et o thc reader. P,ut the essential in!:rl.t l;r.rlt 1 1 1 I I i r
C
:- -L..- -1
-L so11lr form of s o u n d - r ~ n . ~ lI I~I ~, I ~
I I~ ~ ~ ~ l ~
. ~ ~ - c . o t t I>
r ~ lr r l a i v,' the use
\ f ~ ~ i
Ilighcr dimensions of reality, these sounds hein!: r.c-l(.lI
1 1 1 )lirnlly as words of a mortal language.
c;trth,

111

.'OM

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

'I'llere can be no doubt but that, much as the contemporary fundarurnt;~listChristian would like to believe the Creation account of
(.;enesis to be a simple, literal record of events, this is not in fact the
case. Only from the fifth century AD did the Creation stories of
Genesis begin t o be taken as literal historical records; this occurring
as knowledge of the ancient wisdom within the Christian movement
deteriorated or was forced underground. Before this, we find
0 )
the Genesis Creation as
Gregory of Nyssa (c. ~ ~ 3 9 describing
'ideas in the form of a story'. The other prominent churchmen of the
time also accepted the Creation stories as being allegorical.
The book is known to be a conglomeration of a number of
allegorical Creation stories which themselves were derived at least in
part from the Middle and Near East. Other writings which have
survived from these regions also hint at a general knowledge among
the mystics and priests that the Creation was linked with a form of
utterance or sound. The Hindu conccpt of the OM we have already
looked at. In the BabyIonian account of the Creation, the original
state of the universe, hrforr nutter had been pulled together and
solidified, is, as in Genesis, rcfcrrcd to as 'waters', or as an 'ocean'.
(In all the Creation ~nytlisof antiquity, the concept of primeval
waters preceding thr formation of the earth can be taken as
references to ;L I ) r i ~ ~ ~ rtlux-like,
~ ; l I , pre-solidified state of matter.) The
earth, we arc old. still bore no name, and did not exist 'when no
name had I~ccrln;lrrlcd'. The Creation only came forth when it was
'called into Iwing'."
From rl~cc.osmology of the Jews, in Psalm 19 we read the
follow in^ hc;~utifiill~
poetic lines :

...

71ir hr.~vc.rlsdeclare the glory of God

Day unto day uttereth
spcrc.lr ... 'I'here is no speech nor language, where their voice is
not hr;lrcl. 'l'hrir line is gone out through all the earth, and their
words t o lllr rnd of the world. In them hath hc set a tabernacle
for thr sun.. .
Still more portic is that supremely evocative question in Job 38:
'Where wast thou wl~cnthe morning stars sang together?' - which
might have been writrcn hy Pythagoras himself.
The science of tlic ;trchetypal cosmic Tones, as known to the
Hindus and early Chincse, we would not normally equate with
Christian doctrine and dogma. Yet elements of the science were
apparently known to the more mystically-minded among the
Christian movement, and were retained for some centuries after

209

:l~r.ist.The early Church Father, Hippolyl IIS, s1:tr c-d I l l ; ~ tMarcus

rivcd the revelation that:

I rt

..

11ir seven heavens . sounded ( ~ ; I c . ~ IO I I I . v ~ ~ w r lwl~ic,l~,

,
all
combined together, formed a complctc C I O X O I I I ! ~ ~ . . . 1 1 1 ~ .,YOIINI/
whereof being carried down to c;~rrIi.I~rc,;~nir
l l ~ rI rr;lle)r, ;III(I
parent of all things that be on earth.
'Illc philosophy of the early Christilins w.ll- 111 nr,lrI y w,~y.;
~r ~tlistinguishablefrom the ancient wisdom I c~.~c.liiri/:s
$11 c 11 II(.I I.~r~tlr.
111 fact, Pistis Sophia, a Gnostic gospel :uid .In r:lrl~c.rwor h t II.III I 11c
Ilook of Revelation, reveals Jesus himself' ;I> Ir;lvinK t 1 1 1 ~ 1 1 1 i o i 1 c111c~l
vven major Tones, and also the seven sub.ronrs 0 1 c;~i.l~
I llc. se.vc-ll
11i;ljorTones :
Do ye seek after the mysteries? N o mystery is niorc rnc.c-llt-l~~
...
saving only T H E MYSTERY of the seven 1~01~~cl.t
ttnr/ /l)rir
FORTY AND N I N E POWERS, and their numhcr I ~ I V I .;C O ~
and no name is more excellent than all these vowels [text's i1;llic.s l.
A name wherein bc contained all names, all Lights, sntl ;LII
powers, knowing it, if a man quit this body of matter no srnokc,
no darkness, nor Ruler of the Sphere, or of Fate shall be ablc rcr
hold back the soul that knoweth that namc
If he shall L I ~ I C I .
that unto the fire, the darkness shall flee away

...
.. .

EGYPTIAN GENESIS
'I'urning to Egypt, we discover a science of mysticism and a
lnythology of the Creation as complcx as those of India and China.
And again we encounter the conccpt of the creative force of sacred
sound. The Egyptian Book o f tht Dead and other sources declarc
quite unambiguously that God. or his lesser, servant-gods, created
cverything that is by combining visuitlization with utterances. First
thc god would visualize the thing that was to be formed; then hr
would pronounce its name : ;incl it would be.
~ r o mas late as the reign of' Alexander 11, a text dating fro111
about 3 1 0 ~
still~ has thr god of the Creation declaring:
'Numerous are the forms I'rom that which proceedeth frorn 111y
rnorlth.' The god Ra was also called Amen-Ra, with thr 11rrlix
'Amen'. The term, Amen, or AMN, was well undrrsrocjtl I r y lllr
I!h~~ptian
priesthood, and equated with the Hindu OM ('I'l~r~ v ~ I I ~ I
is still used today of course, for the closing ot' tlrr 1u.1y r - ~ ~I I. !
(:Iiristians.) One papyrus states: 'Ra spakr at r 111. II~.!:IIIIIIII!:
(11
-

'11)

'I'HE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

, I ~hade
J the earth and heavens to rise out of the waste of
w.11 cr.
'l'lia~the archetypal,
ocean of Creation, mentioned in so
Irl,tny myths around the world, is not t o be taken literally as having
hccn water is nowhere made plainer than in Egyptian Creation
accounts. In these it is specifically statcd that before there existed
any forms of living beings there existed Nu, a vast mass of Celestial
Waters. In this cxisted the germs of all living things that were later
to take form, both gods of the heavens and creatures of the earth;
but they existed 'in state of inertness and helplessness'. From out
of these Celestial Waters the first god, Khepera, or Ra, emerged
ing his o w n name. Thereafter he btgan t o
into being by 1
other gods by the combined process of
create other fc
visualizing them and uttering their names. The gods which had then
been created by him were also able t o crcatc through a similar
process, engaging in what wc might call a 'stepping down of the frequency' of the O n e Vibration.
r
point to the primeval
The Egyptian accounts of ~ h Crc;tlir~n
'Waters' as havine bccn :in ~~niliifr.~c.nri:~tt~tI
Illass of energy. Into
these 'Waters' wcrr p o ~ l r i . ~Ill l r ' vi01.:1r i( ,115 of the W o r d , thus
~ c thrown
*
into a
sending forth r;~tli:irin!; ctlrrrlich,
w11r.11.I s ~ t o ~ is
r
back from
pond. When i n ;I 11011~1~ l i ro~.igin;ilw:~vcs; ~ r rc*flccted
;ct~ila much morc
the banks, a crisc-t.r(-wing ol' tlic ripples rc.i~~lr\,
complt.x p t t r r n oi Kc.ornrtric:il f o r n ~ scmcrgc..;. As wxves cross each
other at :inKlr.;, stlu:~rcs,triangles and othcr fortn, c.111be seen. Thcsc
and more complex shapcl;, on the cosmic Ievr.l, W C I ~to the ancient
viewpoin~rlir m;~tricesfor the precipit;ttion of' n1;lttc.r. T h e kcy to
creatinn in m,lttcr was considered t o be thc. v/r.r\c resulting from
'oppo\inK' w;ivcs o f vibration.
Not only t h e Egyptian Creator-God, hut
the lesser gods
~ words of power,
w r c nccrcditcd with the knowledge and thc 1 1 s01'
their moi~th.;bring 'skilled in uttering them'. With these words of
power thc hicr;truhy of gods could create and tlcs1roy form, heal the
diseased and givc lifc to the dead. The God of' gods, Ra, 'spake
crcating words' in nrdcr to bring into being all tlic lesser gods of the
celestial hierarchy. According to the Egyptians, Ra also gave the
secret of certain wnrds of powcs even to the earthly
words whereby reptiles, cliscases and other evils could be overcome.
This shows that the iiica of the creative power of speech was not
limited t o the mythical crcation of the universe. I t was believed that
material conditions could bc changed at any time by the utterances
of the gods. Mortals. t m , knowing how to wield the words of
( '1 I..IIII)II

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

IIIIwcr, could themselves invokc and dircct

11r;ivens.One text has Ra saying:

211
1 1 1 ~cncrgicx

of the

Iiear me now! M y command is t h ~ ;,I1

t n l y c't~iltlrrnIN. I , r o ~ ~ g h ~
nigh t o mc [raised in conscinusnr\\ l .if,111,ct I 11r.y r11.i y I , I O I I O I I I I C c*
words of power which shall hc Trll Illjrln c.111l1, 1 1 1 t l 1 1 1 111c
hcavens
In precisely the same way that ~ l l cgod*; t.rr..~rttl I r y c-orl~l>i~~irl,i;
viqualization with speech, so too did thc pric.r;t\ Ilr.lir.vr. i t I ~ ( r - > \ ~ l , l r .
1ii;in to work change within the physic:tl wcb~-ltl.V1-~11.11i7.11
i<) I I
c,ornbined with certain mantras and invoc:ition\ w:~,,c r l t ~ t . r L l t . l c * i l 1 0
I)c the vital key t o success in most acts of whitc nt;~!:it.
The Egyptians also had an identical concept t t , 11i;ir ol I l ~ r -1 1 111(111
bija mantra. Everything in the universe, having hrrn r.l.c..ltc'Il I)? . I
cwtain vibratory pattern o r combination of patterns. 1 ~ 0 1 1 1 ~. 1l l - l l ) 1 1 1 '
~llasteredor influenced by the uttering of its ~ o r r e s ~ o n c l i r\ ~I I, :I I ~ ~ I
itter tern. Everything and cvcrybody possessed a ccrtain Irry I l t r t r .
11;1me, sometimes called the 'secret name' - secret I~cGIII!;~. 1 1 1 1 - :I
prrson t o reveal his secret name would enable others to p i n I M I W C ' I '
over him. Ra, too, possessed a secrct name, the most powert.111o1.;1Il
~ h words
c
of power. W e therefore find Ra declaring in onc tcxt :
I am a god and the son of a g n d ; I AM the Mighty One, Son 01
the Mighty One. Nu, my father, conceived my secret nanlc
which giveth me power, and he concealed it in m y heart so that
no magician might cvcr know it, and, knowing it, be givcn
power to work evil against me.
The bija mantra or 'secret narnc' cor~ccptwas widespread in the
;tncient world, and is still prrsrnt in some parts of thc world todiiy.
Every human being is belirvcd t o possess his o w n personal mrlocly.
Alid hy imitating the sound.; 111' n;tcilrc, many cultures have belicvt<l
111;tl 1,ower was gained ovcr t I I V l>articu!ar spccies of creatrlrrh I 11
phcnt llnenon of nature which W.I\ imitated. No living creatilrtnc.1r113t
1
r c p r o d ~ ~asc many different S O I I I I ~ Sas could man, due to n~:ir~'m.
sntilc vocal apparatus and his ;ibility to construct mu.;ii.tl 1 1 1 + . 1 1 1 1
merits, l'his gave man enormous power, for if he knew rl~r.Ir.rt I
111 I I
kcy~i~>tc-sound
of an object hc could reproduce i t ; i r l < l I 1 1 r - I , l > ! !-1 1 1 1
l~oss'ssionof thc cncrgy with which the object W;+&.c I I , L I ! ~ r1 1 I
;tl>lct o wicld this in-dwelling force (ormda, b n t i , r i t , ~ ) r r t r r .\rI.l. p t f . r r * , r ,
.~ntlso on) was the kcy to all magic. Tllc f1i.11:rJ l.111I 1 1 . I, ~ 1 1 1h11
14

0 I

I l r

'I

'I'HE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

energy to be an impersonal force which man, if he

I;III.W IIOW,could control and direct.
Ax i l l China and India. Egyptian music was deeply associated
W I I I I niysticism and cosn~ology.We have seen in previous chapters
tl~armany cultures believed the pentatonic musical scale, with its
two auxiliary semitones (constituting what today is called the
diatonic scale), to mirror the seven major Tones of Cosmic Sound.
So too in Egypt. And again, even as other peoples believed each of
the Tones t o be produced by one particular divine being (such as the
Elohim of the Hebrews) - so too the Egyptians. W e may take, for
example, one particularly jovial Creation account. A Gnostic
Egyptian text of unknown date and unknown origin states
allegorically that in the beginning G o d 'laughed' seven times :
I l ! : , ~ r ~ l ( - t l tl1i5

H a-Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha-H
a-Ha. G o d laughed, and from these
seven laughs seven Gods sprang up which embraced the whole
universe: these were thc first Gods.
Many of the world's religiorts icgrcc with tlcc idea that there are
seven 'first Gods' which arc rllc living c.rtll~odimcntof the first differentiati.)n of the One Tone into srvrrl. ' I ' l l c . I-Icbbrews called these
Gods the Elohim. (And it is wortl~l x ~ i ~ l ~ i0 l1 1i 1g 111;ttin a number of
passages in Genesis, when God is dcscril~ctlrn:~clilcgthe Creation,
the English Bible phrase 'Lord God' is actu:~lly;I vtLrypoor translation of this plural Hcbrew word, Elohitn. ' l ' l c ; ~ ~ is, the original
Hebrew version has it that the Creation w;ts tlr~cto thc Gods of the
seven Tones.) These same first Gods, wliir~l~
cunl;cll;ltefrom the
,. .
principile of- the Trinity, are also a part of H i11tl11t r ; I~iligs;
~
but here,
in Hincduism, W e also have the interesting disl i11r.tiot~between five
of thenI and twc) others, which surely relates t o I 1 1 fict
~
that two of
the seven notes of the diatonic scale are scrnironc.~.'Seven are the
great Gods below the Trimurti,' we are told. 'l:ivi+t1111yare working
and two conccalcd. They are Indra, Vayu, Agni. V;truna, Kshiti.'
Egyptian hirroglyphs, wherever they show - ;I.; they often do the descending rays of the sun, are actually ill~lhtratingthe descending Tones or 'rays' of the first Gods as these rays come forth from
the One. Invariably the rays are depicted as radiating and descending lines; often with I~;tr~ds
attached t o their lower ends, indicating
that their purpose is to crcntc and fashion things. They arc always
shown in numbers indicative of the Cosmic Tones: seven, twelve or,
occasibnally, thirteen.
The Egyptian priesthood uscd sound as a means of invoking the

T H E PHYSICS OF 1'1-1li ()M

213

1Mlwer of the Amen, or OM. Both the 111usicof i ~ ~ s t r c ~ n ~;111d

c n t the
s
ilr~~nan
voice, as in the giving of manlr;ts, il~vot.;~tiolr.;
;clid fi;tts,
I ould be used for this purpose. The very wortl I;jr uc I I I I I ~ Ii t cc.ll' (bt>rr'l,
litcrally 'voice') indicated that earthly so~llltlw;~:;; I : , ~ . ~ I Ci . l l c . t l wit11 the
Word.
Single, sustained notes were intoncd i l l c.x;tcr l y 1111. \ , I I I I ( . W ; I Y I ~ I : I I
I I I C Hindu intones the OM. this being for t11r ~ N I ~ ~01) I. II( \Ilic\:ill/:
I.
lllrlcr harmony and union with the C;o~llrt.;ctl.I \ I I I I l ~ ~ ~ l l . c l r lI yI I O I . ~
1l1;t11 anywhere eise throughout thc civili~rtlIiistol-it . r l v . l c ~ r l c l . I I I ( '
Iigyptian mysteries involved the dclihrratc., sc,ic.nli l i i IIW. I 11 r.1lc.r iSic
v(.rbal formulas.
Maspero recorded with regard to t l ~ c I!!:yl~ti.t~~r c ~ , c ! : i ~ . r l
t rremony :
The human voice is the instrument par t.ucefl~rr~-~~
01 I I I 111
~ I ~ \ I .incl
enchanter. It is the voice that seeks afar the Invisihlr\ ~ I I I I ~ I I I O I I ~ . L ~ ,
and makes the necessary objects into reality. Evcry ~ I I ( .I I I I I I C
sounds it emits has a peculiar power which escapes rhc noti~.c.01
the common run of mortals, but which is known to and n1:tclc tl-.r.
of by the adepts .. But as every one [of the pronunciatio~r\. c l l t l
their pitches] has its peculiar force, great care must be taken no1
to change their order or t o substitute one for the other.'"

'I'l~cpower of the voice extended not only to the magical ceremony,

to everyday speech. All utterances, it was believed, releascd
. I certain energy: good or bad, ;recording to the inner state of thc
',l>c;~ker
and his use of rhythm, mclc~dyand syntax. The average
1r1;11i, ignorant as to the powchr of t11c spoken word, constantly
4 I-cnted his own limitations of ch;~r;cctcr,
his own ill-health, and his
h idle, thoughtless and
1)wn undesirable conditions OS lifc, t l ~ r o l ~ ghis
~n;~licious
utterances. Rut a p;cr~ oI' the training of the priesthood
;11vo1vcdthe correct and gu;~rrlrtluse of speech at all times. Thr
:;XI rt.11111-centurycabbalist. C ; i ~ l l i o Camillo, recorded that accordin!:
11
Iri:, information the Egypt i;cn priesthood, in their perfect ;c11t1
..r it.~rtil'ic~;ill~
proportional usc of everyday speech, caused thc wc)rtl\.
w I I ~ I II ~ ~ o n o u n c eto
d ,be 'ani n~;ucdby a harmony3.
h1111 11 that concerns the Egyptian mysteries is now clo;tkrcl i l l I I I I .
I I I ~ \ I \ t r l time. W e can bc sure that little if any of i t s ~ I I I I ~ . I I I I I , . , I
1 r a . t t llin!:c were written down and have survived. E5pc.l i.rlly 4 l c 1 1 III!:
I I W c.;ll-ly tlyn:csti~s,the Land of the Nile's systcm of I I I V * , I I ~I - . I I I . I I I I I
lr~.c!:il.;~lscicncc was probably as highly-dcvcl~~l~c~~l
.t.. I 11.11 c 11 ,111 v
lll.l1~11(..
liar ~ X : I I I Ithcre
~ ~ Care
, indications t11:tl t l l r . r l , . r , I r l I I , I I ~111.1 y
I ~ t l calso

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

THE PHYSICS 01:T I 11;. (-)M

II;IVC hccn regulated, as in China and elsewhere, according to the

istianity in which Christ is descrihcd ;IS 'I llr I>l;~yrr

of tlic flute'
IIC leader of the dance'.
111 Persia the name of the fabulous hum:[ hirtl is ilerivr~ifro111tllr
1 4 1 1 1 1 , Hum, which is related to O M . And trarlition h;~s
it t l i ; ~ tsl~ould
~ l l rIluma bird alight for a moment upon thr 11r;itlof' any prrson,
t l i r . ~it~ is a sign that the person is
crr hrcomr ;I 'kin!:'. Irici~l~~rtt;rlly.
the root, Hu, is a d i m
cc t o rhr Woril of' God;
111t1 this is most interesting, for this samc root is ;~lso:I Il;trt 111'tlic
w(,rd human. In 'human', the man portion cc~rnc-sf'rc~rnthr S;lnskrit
4\1t~na,or 'mind of the ordinary man'. So tlic* trrril 'IIIIIII;I~' is
~llrrcforean eternal reminder of the ancicnt clor~trinr:t1l.11 (;()cl is
~ . V ~ Inow
I
in all men, and can be more fully rc;1li7.cil l ~ ~y 1 1 .I :vrn its
Ir\us was also the Christ, demonstrating the uniiic:~ric~n01 111~.
Iwinciples of earth and heaven as both thc Son of M a n ;ancl t l ~ cSot1
I 11 ( h d , so are all men ha-man; God-man.
'I'hoth is the most common Egyptian name by which t lir k:o(t
t,:trically corresponding to an Egyptian Second Person o f t l ~ r
'I'rinity was known. Thoth himself is described as God's clcput y
whom G o d (in the form of Ra) brought into being by h'1s wortl.
'I'lience, as the W o r d of God, Thoth steps down the vihr;ctorv
frequencies of the One fully to the level of material density, crcatin,;
he earth with his word or words. But, like the Christ or the h w a q
rlrung principle, the spiritual essence of Thoth could also incarnatc
within the extremely righteous and purified man. A number of
.ICCOUI~ t spez
s tk of Thoth as havi ng lived and walk:ed among men.
According to Clement of Alexan dria and other sources, Thoth was
:Inothctr namc: for Herme:s Trismlegistus, Ivho was the 'inventor of
nus sic' and the author of books of Egyptian chants to the gods.

.' I 4
I

t~yclcsof time and astrology. The precentor of thc temple regularly

chanted the hours," giving forth a release of sound for each new
time-cycle. Dio Cassius of the second century AD givcs the fascinating titbit of information that the Egyptians pactised in their music a
sidereal scale, from A to G , connected to the movcments of the
planets. (This again points to the crucial role of Egypt as the real
birthplace of Pythagoras' teachings on the Harmony of the
Spheres.)

1 1

THE WORD MADE FLESH

A n d the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld hzs
gloty, the glory as of he only begottm o f the ~nther,)full of grace and
truth. - John 1 :14

l '

i
'

lI

l '

I
l

In many religions the Second Person of thc Trinity is equated with

the Word of God. This wc find in the New Testament, where
Christ is a number of times referred t o as the Word. The mystery of
the incarnation of tlir Word is that the imperfection of man and the
perfection of God ;trr nhlr to inhabit one and the same form; and
that the forn~crc;,n I~ccon~c
the latter. Thus, though the person,
Jesus, was h1rrr1 oi wom:tn, the W o r d entered into and was with
him. Gnc~sticCIiristi:~nsbelieved that this same W o r d could enter
into any nl;tn wlio It~tdsufficiently prepared, purged, and perfected
himself. 3'11r1.1-111:tybe something in the fact that the Latin word
sonzrs .hrr,;~rnrl ~ c ~ t lthe
i
English word, son. or Son, and also the
ning sound. This dual meaning of 'the Word'
Frcncli wt rrtl.
lurid and the Son; both Vibration and Con- thnr i t w.15
scio~~s~irss
ere more apparent than in the apocryphal
'Poem 01' r l ~ r(;o~,>rlof St John'. This work is almost word-forword thc . ; : I I ~ I ~ . ;IS the opening of the Biblical Gospel of St John except t l i ; ~t l~l c I l-rllt 'the Word' is in each casc replaced by 'Mind':
'In the hrpinnit~!; wits Mind
As we havr n o ~ r already,
~l
in China the dual Son-Sound concept
is evident in thc f';~ctr h;tt the emperor was said t o embody the huang
chung or 'yeUow Lrll' trlnr. In Hindu scripture Vishnu, the Second
Person of the Trinity, is called 'the Voice' or the 'great Singer', for
he is said to have crcatcd the universe with his song. Incarnate
within the personage of Krishna, Vishnu enchanted a multitude of
maidens (allegorically representing hum:In souls) by the p1laying of
his flute. Closely paralleling this are thc:early ayjocryphal . texts of

...'

1
#

l
l

215

I '111

I 11

'I

GENESIS NOW
It is usual to think of the Creation account in Genesis as being a
Jrpiction of events which tr;~nspired (whether literally or
;rllcgnrically) aeons ago. Yet wh:tt rnirrges from a study of all othcr
myths and doctrines which 5pe;tk of Cosmic Sound is that this
morlcr~lconception of Geneis 1s quite erroneous. The description of
the Crestion is not only mcxnt to be the story of the original forni;~tion of the earth; it is also an account, couched in symholoj:~,11tt1
vcilcd sllusions, of the eternal process of the creation andpr~rc,rr~trttrrn
of all atoms and all worlds.
According to the ancient wisdom, this procms is rvrr 131 c...rttl .I 11, l
c m-going. Matter is not only created, but also prcsrrvr-tt
l III~'.III\
t,fCosmic Sound, and by no other. Indeed, rnatlrr I \ ( : ~ . , ~ 51
I I111rlt1
I

'11,

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

T H E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

clr.ll\ificd form; matter is the Harmony of the Spheres l,yst:tllizcd! Putting it the other way around: Cosmic Sound is
nl.tlrcr in solution. As the ancients believed: take away the Word,
. t l l t l matter instantly reverts into the invisible energy of the void.
'I'hc universe, the earth, and ourselves upon it only exist and continue
to exist because the Word still comes forth. T o the yogi, the OM is
as immediate as the air around him, sounding out in the eternal
present. It beats the rhythm of all hearts, and speaks to the soul
having ears to hear. The great mystics of all time have felt the Word
to be imminent in and around themselves; have known that it was
the elixir of life; that the Creation was not done, neither fulfilled;
that the morning stars still sing together.
111

THE WORK OF ERNST CHLADNI AND HANS JENNY

Nothing brings a point home better than a graphical, physical
demonstration; and the formative power of sound has been
illustrated by none more clearly than by Ernst Chladni and Hans
Jenny.
Ernst Chladni, a German plrysicist, Jcvcloped what became
known as Chladni plates around 1800. Thcsc violin-shaped metal
plates are able to render visible thc kincl of vibrations which are
natural to violins. The plates are evenly cc)vercd with sand, and a
bow then drawn across certain points on ttlc. rdb:e of the plate. The
result is that the sand moves quickly into thc ~-taltcrnof the waves of
vibration produced on the plate. Plates a f othcr shapes, and constructed of other materials, give the same effr-ct; ;tncl anything from
sand to maple syrup, or from iron filings to p;c\rc, can be used to
render the vibratory wavcs visible. The study t rf I l1i5 phenomenon is
called cymatics.
The patterns produced are wonderful to wr i l l their poetic
regularity. They are also dynamic, changing qi~icklywith changes in
pitch and resonance. In this manner it is possihlc ro make visible the
vibrations produced by specific moments in thr music of particular
works, such as from a Beethoven symphony or it H;~chtoccata.
Lyall Watson, the biologist well-known for his book Supmature
and other works. has commented with interest that Chladni's figures
often adopt familiar organic forms:
Concentric circles, such as the annual rings in a tree trunk;
alternating lines, such as the stripes on a zebra's back; hexagonal
grids, such as the cells in a honeycomb; radiating wheel spokes,
such as the canals in a jellyfish; vanishing spirals, such as the
turrets of shellfish - all thcse commonly occur."

2 17

I'llrse resemblances between archetypal sound-forms :tnd lifc-forms

y not be without their significance.
'Ihc Swiss doctor and scientist, Hans Jenny, has rrccntly 11rldrrI .ckrn Chladni-like experimentation
with n morr sophist ic;atcd
.ll~~:~ratus,
the 'tonoscope'. The vibrating surfncc 01' t11r ronoscopc
1 .l11 have the volume and pitch of its vibrations contrr~llr~l
, I I IIIC
I tlllch of a dial. Again, it is possible to use various sul3sr ;~llcrrupc
it.
,t(c.ording to which best illustrates the patterns (I!' lltr SOIIII~IYill
(~llcstion.The shapes and effects produced are rhcn c.;~l>ltlrrcl
1111 film.
i r m e of the results are strongly reminiscent of v;lricnls p l r r n u ~ ~ ~ r r l ; ~
Iwrscnt in nature. Vibrated paste, for examplc. ;IS pic.tllrrtl i l l onc
-ac.sirsof photographic plates, suggests the appcarnncc. o f rnrly sl:t~;~-s
cell division.
Other photographs have been taken of liquids suc I t -1% w;trrl.. I p y
Incans of a stroboscope. They capture intricate yct l ~ r ; t ~ t ~ i \f ~~I lI lI l ~
tilrtrical interactions of various amplitudes of waves piissitlg rl~rou~:l~
I llc substances. The viewer has the impression of seeing thc Crrnt ic 111
llcclf as when the Word went forth into the Celestial W;LIc-ss. '1'11~
Il~riresproduced are in a constant state of flow. Rotary w~tvcsol'lcn
rlnerge and set the pattern turning. One experiment resulted in t l ~ r
~wrfectand dynamic shape of the T'ai cbi, which symbolizes tllc
~litcrplayof cosmic forces, or theyang-yin polarities underlying ;a11
11l;anifestation.
This and much more work by Hans Jenny is described in detail
I l y Jenny himself in Cymatics I and
Nothing could be more
t lrarly illustrative
of the power of sound to shape otherwise
~lisorganizedsubstances. Through Jenny's apparatus it is possible
lirrrally to see what one is hearing.
Complex and meaningfill pittterns are even more apparent in
Icnny's sound-affected substances whcn viewed at the microscopic
1rvc.l. Then are revealed henutili~l and mathemati~dl~-~recise
r~l,tl~~lala-structures
looking likc groupings of microscopically-viewed
;c11 I W f1;tkes. The stress-interactic )ns created in substances by their
nl.-..lllc to sound frequencic~;always result in formations replrtr
w i ~ l i rllcaningful numerologic;~l, proportional and symrnetria~l
tlt~.~lit~c<.
Ir1.l

'rtl E SONG OF THE ATOM

:l

/avtr ~ r called
r
Vibrations in

Occultism. - H . P . Rl;tv:~~
\It v

I I O W ~1.c-WC to take the widespread convictinn tl1:11 11lrt.r c - x l * ~.I ~

~lrl~vc~rs;~l,
stipcr-physical vibration, and that it i:: r 11,. ~ . ; I I I ~. ~- t ~ c.1
t l lrr

111
111

rlol

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

,111 1ll;lltcr and all sound? Is the concept of the OM in fact

IIIII): I>ut primitive, irrational superstition? O r does it agree with

w l l ; ~tllodern
~
science has to tell us about the nature of matter?
OS course, the authors of the Upanishads and the twentiethc,c*nturyphysicists work within the frameworks of two very different
systcms of terminology. The two also exhibit radically distinct
;tpproaches t o the gaining of knowledge. And what all this means is
that while a brief glance may give the appearance that the two paint
diametrically opposite pictures of reality, such appearances may be
deceptive. The physicist may have arrived at the very same truths
that were known t o the early Hindus, but without his realizing it.
Let us ask ourselves: If the concept of the OM is valid, how, in
modem scientfic terms, would the OM show itselfz W e must recall: the
ancients were adamant that the OM was not audible sound at all.
Therefore we are not looking for 'sound' as such; not sound as we
usually think of it.
But there are further leads. The O M is said to be a highfrequency vibration which not only shnpcs, but is, all material substance. T o examine the possil>lr vnliclity o f this in an unbiased and
scientific manner, it is necessary to ; t ~ kourl;clvcs: Is there any evidence
.that atoms or their consritrtent suhatomir pnr/i~-Itsare.forrned by, or are
related to, any physical energies or ai/itlilirr r,~hichcrrc of a vibratoly
nature?
It needs also to be taken into c o n s i d r r ; ~ t i tli:~t
~ ~ ~ iby 'vibrational
activity' is also meant any activity or encr1:y which is cyclic, wavelike or oscillatory in nature. Then it is rca1ixt.d t11;1t ;ttoms and subatomic particles not only contain such encrgic..; : t Jtr'y ;ire themselves
composed of nothing else but energy in a st;ttc (11 oscillation. Many
years ago H. P. Blavatsky, in The Secret Do(.lriv~-.
wrotc with disarming candour: 'Atoms are called Vibrations i l l ()c.c~lltisrn.'T o the
scientifically-minded nineteenth-century rcailrr I%l;lvatsky's statement must havc seemed confusingly
- . contradiclory to the 'known
facts'. Only sincc then have physicists themsclvc~cboved that atoms
are indeed vibratiims, being almost alarmingly insubstantial, and not
at all the tiny gr:iins of matter which the mcchitnistic nineteenthcentury physi;ist would have had us believe.
In short, there i:, tn the open-minded person a quite amazing
similarity between thc discoveries and theorir.5 of modern physics
and the philosophies o i thc ancients. These similarities have been
admirably listed and examined in Fritjof Capra's The Tao of
Physics," which, since its publication, has become something of a
minor classic. The deeper
physicists explore into the nature

THE PHYSICS OF T H E OM

219

matter, the closer they find themselves to thr tr:ic,l~in#sof anti'solidity1

,et it suff 'ice to remind ourselvcs that the ;IIIJ)~II.CIIL
:er is an illusion, since all stibstnncc:, ; i r ~Iitr~nrcl o t ~ tof
)ly minutcr atoms; these being scp;tr;~tc.rlI)y clist;~ncrswl~icli;IlotllS
I c.I;~tive
to their own sizes - are vast. And t l.
y;y i l l
~l~rmselves
are not in the least bit solid, I:
lllotion. In cyclicmotion; which is to s ; ~ yi,l l
Scientists Douglas Vogt and Gary Sult;~nIlr,sttll;lr I. 111 I I I ~ I I -Ilook
h'rdlity Revealed that all of the physical clrnicntc nl.ll~iCc.\twithin tlir
viqible, physical plane of existence by means of ~ I I C i~~trr;ic.~icrl~
of
I yclic waveforms - these waveforms not in tilt-n~rclvr.;
I,c.illC:
lilllil~~l
11 1 the physical plane at all, but extending tl~rougllinro I 111.pllycic.;ll
irt~mhigher levels of reality. This is surely ;is closc. 10 r~ll~hrr5t:irnping the ancient viewpoint on matter as contcn1por;iry si.irncr
I I luld get.
O r is it? The scientist, Andrew Gladzewski, dirl ionsitlr~-.tl~lt~
I,(-searchinto the correlations between such phenomcnn as ;ctonlic
1x1ttern:;, plants, crystals and harmonics in music, upon which onc of
11;sconczlusions was that 'Atoms are harmonic resonator^."^ WI~t~rl
W C con:tpare this statement t o that of Blavatsky - 'Atoms arc c;~llctl
Vibrations in Occultism' - we see how true it is that the barrirrs
ljctween science and esotericism are now crumbling.
It is actually a well-established principle now in atomic physics
111;it atoms react and behave as though they had resonance. This
rrsonance principle effectively disintegrates the barriers betwecn
and music, and promiscs t o provc one of the most fertilc
I'irlds of research for the theoretical atomic physicist of the near
hlishing the concept that not only
The principle is ral
.S, can be theoretically considered
n, but all subatom:
.... ..-._-gnodes of resonancr. in rrrlrer words, some scientists are beginrrirr,~10 regard the atom as a &rrt/ ,r/'~itlymusical note. T o venture a
Ill,l.ril>lepun. does this not ring ;I IIc.lli Where now, the dichotomy
11c.1 wc.c.11 the ancient wisdom's conception of matter and that of thr
porary p1lysicist ?
removed from the knowledge or awareness of the avrr:l/:r.
the stre,et, academic journals on particle physics h;lvr 101.
<( I I I ~ I . y r;lrs been postulating t11at the basic nature of srtbiitc~mic]>:I Ilirlrs, right down to thc quark, is a harmonic one. Morr rri~rlillv.
Ij.ipc.rr h;tvc bccn published in such journals on thc suhjt.c~t(11 wl1.11ir
I ~ I I I , W I I ;IS 'exotic resonance', which goes even Si~rtlir.~~,
. I I I I ~ w l ~ 11~ itl l
111c- opinion of many atomic physicists is the niob;r~ ~ r i r r n i ~I,..lrl
i r ~ gwc.
11.1vrt o tlic disc.ovcry and understanding ol thv 1~11intr.v~rr1tl.11
11.t1111.i.
11 ~ ~ ~ ; t t t ~ * r . " )

of

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

U

'11

22 1

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I !I 1, ~k which has been greeted with much interest by aware and

[.~40~r*~~ic.;~lly-minded
Germans is Wilfried Kruger's Das Universum
I\

,\tt~q/'"which, as the title suggests, is more than a little Pythagorean

111 irs contents. Kriiger has combined a knowledge of musical theory
with that of atomic physics, and has brought each of these to bear in
;In intriguing investigation into the heart of the atom. O n the face of
it, Kriiger seems literally to have demonstrated that the structure of
thc atom contains ratios and numbers which resemble t o a degree
impossible to account for by chance the harmonic principles of
music. His findings are supported in the volume by a wealth of
detailed and painstakingIy-prepared notes and diagrams. Among his
conclusions are: 'With the harmonic minor scale we face a synthesis
between the vertically-oriented forces of the inner atom and the
horizontally-oriented forces binding the molecule together.'
Perhaps the most thought-provoking of Kriiger's findings
concerns the secret Pythagorean teaching, the Tetraktys. The
Tetraktys linked the four musical intervals of the octave, fifth,
fourth a n d second with ratios ;tnd proportions which, according to
the Pythagoreans, gcwerned the crc;ction of thc world and of all life.
Kruger's research uncovered an unniist;tk;~hlc;tssociation between
these intervals and the structure of tllr ri~~c~leic
;~cids- which are the
fundamental physical ingredients of orpnic. lil;..
Donald Andrews is another rescarchtr 1 0 h;~vc:cxplored along
such lines. His complex theory of the univc-rsc. htts each atom as
emanating one key-note 'sound', as a rninrrtc. r.c-sor~;itor,and conceives of collections of atoms (or notes) as forn~inp,~ h chords
c
which
are known to the physicist as molecules. C o r i l i t ~ ~ ~the
i ~ r gexpansion
outward in size, molecules combine to form rllc. v;~ri~)iis
objects and
forms of the world, each object and living I)cir~!: ~llcreforebeing
compc~srdof a large number of molccules, o r cllor-11s.which give to
the objcct o r being its own individual and conlplrx 'sound'. Hence
the title of Andrcws' book, The Symphony ofLzfi~."

THE VOCAL RANGE OF THE ONE SING ER

N o t only suppnsrclly 'solid' matter, but all forrns of energy, are
composed of waves : which is to say, vibrations. All of the different
kinds of eIectromagnr~iccsnergy - including radio waves, heat, Xrays, cosmic rays, visihlc light, infra-red and ultraviolet - are
composed of a wave-like or vibratory activity, these vibrations
travelling through the univcrsc at 186,000 miles per second. The
only difference between each of these phenomena is their frequency
of vibration o r wavelength. Each merges into the other at a certain

.,.~t,(.ltngth;which obviously means, whcn one gcBtsdown t o it, that

, 1 1 1 ~,m1each one and the same thing.
W l ~ c nthis vibratory activity occurs at ;L frcqtrcncy o f around
r1o0.000billion waves per second it becomes particul;irly incrrestirlg
11111 ;~c.cessibleto us in everyday life, for this is tllc Irr~~11cr1c.y
;~t
r v 1 1 1 t . I 1 our eyes have been designed to scnst the vil~s:~tiorlc
;tntl
I I .lll~lllit
them to our brains in the form of the visl~:ilp r r c c - l ~ ~ i01'
or~
II,;III; ~ n dcolour. Slight differences in w ; ~ v c l t t > g ~!:ivr
h riw I O 111t
,xion of different colours. That light s h o ~ ~ lIrr
tl s c i c r ~ ~ ~ l ~ i ~ ; ~ l l y
ihed as a wave-frequency once again ; ~ I i ~ ; rr ~~ ~s~ > r l ( . ~\ t. r. ri c n ~ . ~
jy-side with the ancients. The authors of tllr. I l l ~ : r n i \ \ ~ : ~ tw
l ~r .
11.1vrrecounted, knew that light was a forni o f v i l r r ; ~ ~ i oI ~~c - ilr ,l ! : , I
r l ~ l l h 0 1 . rarefied form of 'sound'.
.111tl
N;~tureherself also indicates the close link I2clwc.c.11so1111t1
II!:~II, the solar-spectrum of colours displaying n nun~hcl I 11 ~ l ~ r
.
I~~~rlwr.ties
of tones. T h e resemblance is just as thon);h t l ~ ~1,111.
Ill~~.nornenon
. . .
- light - were a higher state of the othcl,. ~ I I \ I . I \
tone organizes itself naturally into the seven nrlrcs ol 1 1 1 ~ .
c scale, so too does the visible solar-spectrum forni rhc \c.vr.n
, of the rainbow.
11 will be recalled that the significance of the number scvc11 I \ ; I ~
11.11lirional1~
held to be associated with the fact that all o f t l l t
lllllvrrse is formed by, and therefore mirrors in nature, the scven
111.l jor (and five minor) cosmic Tones. In fact, all of the mysticill
I I I I I ~ I I ,of~ ~ ~the Creation have their counterparts in the visiblc
,l~lq>crties
of light. One, the number o f unity and of the Supreme, is
I ~ ~ ~ l . r -o
~n) rearth
e d in the purc, undiffercntiated white light. T w o , the
l ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ of
t . i opposing
ple
opposites. is present in the relationship
111.1wren white and black, and all o f their intermediary shades of
!.I l a y . Three, or the Trinity, ni:~nifesisvisibly in the form of the three
y colours. Then. by miririg thr light of these three colours as
we 1 , seven colours inclucling white are produced in all: thesc
visible frequencies of the acbvenTones.

17I I MYSTICISMOF COLOUR

I 11'1111 . I illustrates what h;lppcns when three spotlights of AiTfrrt-~~r
l I = rcd, green and purple - are beamed onto a wall i l l S I I I 11 . I
rv.ly r l ~ . l r lhcy overlap The result: one witnesses a s y n l l r ~ l111 1 1 1 1
r I \ jlrirt<.\s o f the Creation itself. T h e green and rcatl * - J ~ I I ~ I I ! : ~ ~ ~ C ~
U I I I I v ~ r l r . I I I 1 7 r ~ ~ dyellow;
~ ~ c e green and purple pmt41rrr IIIII~..
. I I I ~..(
~1
~ I I \Yl~r.l
t - ,111 three overlap, white is the r e u l t . Tilt\. 111 1.1 l1.r I . I * . 1 0
lc I~.~i.kw:~r
t l , moving from the point of rhr I ~ , I I I I ~( ~
' 1 .I -., I.I II ~111
I

U 4

8 %

'1'11E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I, I I , I Ii(. Source. The descent of the creative energies really works

r l ~ rolqx)site direction: from the One Light springs forth the
I l ~ ~ . ~ * r - i ~the
~ - oTrinity:
nc,
blue, yellow and pink. (These colours con1.1ini11gthe respective qualities of Father, Son and Holy Ghost; or
Will, Wisdom and Love.) Thence, a further differentiation of the
'I'rinity produces the three other colours, giving a total of seven
light-frequencies; each corresponding t o one of the seven cosmic
'Tones and t o one of the seven notes of the diatonic scale.
11.14

111

Figure I :Colour Addition

223

THE PHYSICS OF T H E OM

projected onto a screen in front of thc ;luJirncc.. Colour~ y colour-counterpoint,

,
etc. were all possihlc. Some colourns preferred to play the cl;issics, trans~c~sing
them into the
medium; others composed spcci;tl works p;irticulnrly
a~r--~~~
for
; ~ the
l c d light medium. Some :~rtists,1101 wisl~ingto ni:~kc
1 1 I complete a break from tonal art, consr
-yl)o,~~.ils
wl~icli
I ~ I \ I ~ (, A Y :in
4 - ~ ~ ~ . ~ n ;tones
i t e d and colour-projections
C . ~ I I I I O ~II:IVIIII*VII
t~ll.;ticmedium in its own right, colour-nir~\~r
~ l i o ~ r t h esuccessful,
r
though, for it c:tnnol rt-;~llyIw ,.1ic1 I O 11;tvr
~,l~rvived
into the post-war era.)
Now, besides the seven colours nsnlcd ;~l>trvc.,l l l r * l . t ' ~ ' Y ~ \ I L ;:I
.,li/:htly different series of seven colours whicli c:ln : ~ l \ oI)(- ~ . ~ l r c.I\- l ~
I rlwesenting the seven Tones. These arc the c o l o ~ ~ Ir,Is r III. I . . I ~ I I I J ~I W ,
N,tture's own gift of chromatic beauty. Thc scvcn C I I ~ O I I I - ~01. 1111I .I inbow are violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, r II.;III!:I.
.111tl I-rtl.
I'llcse, and the entire span of the spectrum, are 1wu;llly tlrpit trtl i l l .I
, X I r;iight line, one colour blending into the other from vic IICI . ~ t c 1111.
red at the other. Yet it is more revealing, and cl~>.;rvIrr I
behind all things, to position the colours ; ~ r r ) t ~ n111(.
~l
ference of a circle. It is then possible to see how t l ~ r%OI;II,
.>l,r-cuumrelates to the circle of the zodiac, which in itsclf is t.rllrr.-,
,.ivc of the total number of twelve Tones.
If the spectrum is placed around only about two-thirds of t l ~ r
I ~vrrallcircumference of the circle, we find that these must indctrl \>c.
111ccorrect positions for each of the colours, for the different s h ~ d c s
; I I Y positioned in such a way as to be exactly opposite their complclrlrntary colours. This is a fact which has long been known, but its
.iipnificance overlooked. U'hcn two colours are complementary. it
Incans that when they are conihincd they have the effect of cancelling each other out, the rcsult o i thc ir~ixturebeing grey. In other
words, any pair of complcmc.n~:~ry
cc)lours are the yang and the-yin
:~.;ptctswhich radiate forth from r l i t ccntre on their particular axis o i
I I W circle. In astrology this 11;t.i its direct parallel in the principlr 01
ol'ljosi~~gsigns, which facc c;tch other across the six axes 01- 111(.
~ I II olour

votli;~~..

So similar are the properties of tone and of colour that during the
1920s and '30s a number of musicians branched off into an entirely
independent artistic movement of colour-music. For example, keyboards were constructed which played, not musical notes, but beams

'1'11~. fact that the solar-spcctrum only encompasses aho~rt I W I I

1hirtl5of the circle is also tliought-provoking, and may link W I I11 I l ~ r 1';lcr r l l ; ~ tthe seven major cosnlic Tones are said to hc n1or.r 1.u' ,I 1 ' 1 1 1
. ~ n t lt;lngihlc in their effects throughout the univcrsr I ~ I . I I I r l ~ c . II!,~.
rninor l'cmcs. These five minor Tones (sometirnrs c . ~ I l t . t l ' I ~ I I I ~ .' I I ,I
'5rcrcr' Tones), as represented in colour, wcl111tl , I ( ( ~ I ~ I I I I
11111-1-nlnininpthird of the circumference. And sin(.(.~ I I I l I~ c - c ~ I vI ~r t r t i l t *.
1111

THE PHYSICS OF T H E O M

'THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

111isremaining portion of the circle would still be complecolours t o the solar-spectral colours opposite them, it is
~l~c.rr.Iol.c
possible t o know which colours they are. Opposite the
r.ol.tr-spectral colour of green, for instance, is a purplish-red, and
c~plwsiteto yellow-green comes a bluish-purple.
"l'he total 360' circumference could accurately be called an
'octave' of colour. But to put our conception of this colour-zodiac
into a larger perspective, we should note that it is not a closed circle
at all, but rather, one 360' turn of a spiral as seen from above. That
is, the arc of the circle continues around once more, and again and
again, both anti-clockwise and clockwise, but at a lower and a
higher plane. The spiral of light-frequencies passes upward into the
ultra-violet spectrum and downward into the infra-red, passing in
each case beyond the range of our visual senses. Thus, the visible
octave of colour is but a note within a larger Octave, which is in
itself only a tiny portion of the entire range of frequencies of the
Word.
This entire range of vibrations is t h ; ~known
~
in physics as the
spectrum of electromagnetic waves. I r l I:igurc 2 it can be seen that
the known range of this spcctnzrn cxrcncls from the point of zero
cycles or vibrations per second to ;I l i l t lc. I)c.yoncl 1 02' or a trillion
trilion cycles per second. Beyond that point of very high frequencies our instruments are not yct ablc to rnc;tsllrc. The lower frequencies to thesleft include the broad rangc ol' intluctive heat, and
the frequency used to convey electricity alonK 17owe~1.
lines. Beyond
this come radio waves, and then the infra-rcil ~ ; I I I ~Beyond
(I.
the
range of visible light are the vibrations modern sc ic'nce has termed
ultraviolet light, X-rays and Gamma rays. Fin;lIly c ~ ~ r nthe
e cosmic
rays which are the highest frequency yrr I;IIOWII along the
electromagnetic spectrum.
This spectrum of electromagnetism is referrecl I O wen in modern
physics in terms of its 'octaves', for it is by n.uure a range of
vibratory oct;tves, the entire known range cnco1111);1ssing
about 70
octaves. It can l>(. sren from Figure 2 that thc r:ingc of visible light
takes up only ;I tiny portion of the entire spc-ctrum. Curiously
enough, and as thnrlgh by grand design, of t h c total 70 octaves,
visible light accounts for lust about exactly one octave.
I . ~ l r r . 1111

I~II.III;II.~

&

'l

i~
l

'

~~
'

~1 ,

I
l

IIIII..Again, this 'circle' is actually only onc. ~ . c . v o l ~ ~of

~ i o;I nspiral.
.
of
, \ I I I I Ithe
I ~ ~360 circuit, the scvcn m;~jor;111dlive. I I I ~ I I ~ I11otc.s
1 1 1 t . 11l11sica1
octave take up their twclvc. posit i o ~ ~,I(,: , orcli11;11cs
of
1111. twelve zodiacal signs and tlirir l'oncs. I ~ o l l o ~ v i ~ I ~I I! ~: . sl>ir;~l
I t twn, we descend into lowrr octaves :tnrl C V C I I I II;III y inrt l r l ~ 111;111clc
II)I(.subsonic range of vibration. Abnvc t11c ; 1 1 1 t l i l 1 l c I.;ln,i:c- wc. cnlrr
I I I I O the supersonic range. Strictly spc.;~kiri!:, 1111. s t ~ ~ ~
I I iI t. C I L I ~ ~ I I C ~ ~
b.l,ir;~l cannot be said to be a part of the ol~*t
II.IIII~;I~:III.I
1 % I t C . ~ I I I C I Iy~
$III.IT;~S
*.lr~r;il
: the latter consists of electroniagnc~ri t v il)r
IIC.. ~ i r .
, . l ~ ~ ~vibrations
nd
are literally physic;il in LII;II I I I T ~
I(.
I,.vc.l
I Iilwcver, all can be seen to be derivcd frc1111V I ~ I ~ : I I
I 11 mother. Therefore all that there is - 1111 1n;irlc.l.. ,111 tbllt.l!:y
~ntlccdcomposed of nothing more and nothing Icss I 11.111 . vi111.II i t 111.
'I'he illumined sage has always known this t o I,(. I 1-111..Morc.: II(ves in all of nature its essentialy rhythmic forincl;~~io~~*..
'I'II~.
~g and withering of the flower; the rising and rrl I in!: I )t I 111.
he biorhythms of body, emotions and mind; the W : I X ~ I I / :. 1 1 1 t l
w;tnlng of the moon; the ebb and flow of the tide; the cyclr.; o! 1 1 1 ~ .
..t.,lsons; and the movements of the planets and the stilrs - 1 0 1111:
t~~ystic
these all testify of the Word and of the Music of the Slll~c,r
l.\
~ f ~ ~ ~ psince
~ v all
e rmatter
,
is but the warp and woof of vil)r,;~rion,
a

(,I)

Ii<qure2 :The Electromagtzetic Wave Spectrum

FREQUENCY
103
-,

octave of audible sound be placed around the circumference of a

106

'1"'WCr
liliesI

109
I

(waves p a second)

waves
+

.C4

1o18

101'

Radio or Heminn

I 1 1 ~ 1 t llion
t
heating

r-

Ultra
violet

Infra-

rcd

1021
I

Gamma
rays

1oZ4
I

Cosmic
rays

X-rays

- --

THE IMMINENCE OF THE WORD

In much the same way that thc. range of visible colour can be placed
upon one 360' turn of the elcctromagnetic spiral, so too can an

22 5

I.1111gc.r

WAVE LENGTHS

~ I I I ~,-II I- W

.#I,

THE PHYSICS OI:'I'tII!O M

'THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Jeep

mystery is obvioi~sto ; ~ l l o l > c . l ~ - ~ ~ ~ i ~ l ill ics*tcrIn ~ r s .In the

111r.~ ~ ~ ~ r i c ~ , t l l y - r nman
i n d econsiders
d
everything his eyes can see as

110.

I)c.i~~g,
quite literally, the W o r d revealing itself.

w~ rrds of the m ~ ~ scsitic

i c o f tht' .Sri'~jl/c'rr/\ilw%t'i/iitq::

'L'hc mystic considers his very o w n body and consciousness t o be

r~~;inifestation
of the W o r d . H e considers the purified man t o be a
clear, sonorous note in thc symphony of life. And such a man
therefore has the ability - even thc sacred responsibility - t o invoke
and send forth the energy of the W o r d to all life. This he is
accomplishing even in silent meditation and in quiet prayer. But it is
implemented with an additional force when audible sound itself is
enrolled for the task. Wherever harmonious tones are sounding out,
there is the door opened t o higher dimensions of reality; there d o
the invigorating, resurrecting energies pour into the physical world
and radiate forth like a divine ,electricity of lifc. In this is found the
original meaning and significance behind the bells of churches,
which so truly sound out the OM itself, nlong with dozens of
beautiful overtones. Bells and Songs in the v;irious temples and
shrines of the world wesc oriSil~;~lly
1i)r t l ~ cs ; ~ m cpurpose. And for
the same reason Jo SuTi dc.r-vi.;llr.\ I ) l ; ~ I 111.NIli o r ,.lIyo7a (a double
( ; I I I O I ~ or
I I )the Shankha (a
flute). S o too Jo y0,1:i4 I>Iow I l ~ c ' ,\it~,~:ll
I O . . I I I ~ I 1 1 , I100c1 Forth, the spiritual
shell): to ; t t t u ~ ~1l1t.1115c'lvc.s
(*
;I

o f t l i t . ) r l t . 'I'~)IIC,''
Long ;[go IIIC. /\;.l(.tL1 11wc11 0 I3lc1w r l l c . i r c011(.11 s11(.11 trumpets t o
;II ~hc.riw 01' Venus). Even
invokc t l ~ c . O M . I ( ~ I . I W I I (sl~c.c*iiic.;~lly,
o f 'l'i1)c.r is w r y stroni:ly I t , ~ ~ r t ~ lupon
cJ
the
today, I I I ~ rn~~-,ic.
'I'il~etan music
princil,lc 01- III(. Onc 'I'OIIC. In thc Wcstcrn .;(wa,rh
night .;~.;lrr.c-lyII(. considered nlusic a t all, "Iur 1 4 , tl~~llliss
its worth

WOLIIJ
I)c t o
mist;tkc i t 5 ; I ( I I I ; I ~ significancc
I;)r
I.(+;I'~I)II
;~ntlIXII'P(
I .:tm;c Anagarika Govinda ercpl;~ilis:
'I'iltc.l.~rl ~ . i t ~ l . ~11111sic
l
is not concerned will1 1 1 1 ~ . i:motions of
t c ~ ~ ~ ~ v )i r~:~{(ll i v i t l t ~ ; ~but
l i t ~with
,
the rvrt lu.c.scnt, timdess
c . l t ~ ; t l i lr\
~ ()I'~ ~ ~ ~ i v clife,
r s ;in
~ lwhich our p e s s o ~ ~j c: )ys
~ l and sorrows
d o nor c.ui.;l ... T o bring us in touch wit11 Illis realm is the
~ : ~;is~ well as of Tibetan rir u;11 music, which is
pilrposc 01' ~ n c - c l iion
vibrations that an instrument or a human
built upon ~ I I ( - ilrc.l~c*s~
voice can procli~cx.:S O I I I I ~ Sthat seem to come from the womb of
the earth or froni 111cclcpth of space like rolling thunder, the
mantric sound of n;ttul,c.. which symbolize thc creative vibrations
of the universe, the orii:in o f all thingsa3
Few Westerners have lcarncd the full import behind each aspect of
Tibetan chanting and instrumental music; but even so, something of

227

Even if o n c has n o idea o f l h r fi~rn11.r(;yolo 1;1111;1ssry,

110
inkling o f the mystical conct.l>ts ~ ~ ~ ~ c l ( . rII>('
l ~ it.rrt-nio~li:~l
~~,t:
chanting, n o understanding of t IN. r r . x t , I 111% n111sic r;~cli:~tc's
more than mere exotic charm. Mfith c l 1 1 1 y -,li?:l11. c ~ ( * t . ; ~ l ; i o r ~ ; ~ l
variations, the chant centres :t~.o\~ntl
r r l i c . c,in!:Ir
nolca - I n 1 1
what a notc! . . .
W h a t is fascinating about this cl1;1r11
in!! i \ I l t I I ~ i ~ c ' ~its
.(-l~
resonant depth, but a special voicc tc.c.l~nic~~~r
I ~ I : I.I,I ~ . ( - I I I I I . I I ( - S
certain overtones so strongly as t o givr I IIC- ~ I I I ~ Y II.I (I .I ~11.11. * .I 11~'
~(
monks a r e singing in harmony. Rut thr ~lcrpr.~-.
1 1 1 y \ t i t - links
between t h e proportions of tlic cosmos, oI' 1l1r IIIIIII,III I ~ r ) c l y
and of t h e harmonic series (each pcrccptil~lcpitc,li i\ co~~nc-c
1rt1
with a particular part of the body - bctwscn sol;cl. l > l t . u ~. I~I I\L ~
forehead - which is its seat) are not, a d n i i t c c ~ l lS~~ I I I ( . I ~ I ~ I I ~ ;
that can b e grasped at the drop of a hat.s4
One particularly interesting aspect of the music, which h:~a :I !:rr:lt
1)caring upon its nature and purpose as an earthly reflection 01 1 1 1 ~
OM, is described by Peter Hamel:
O n e peculiarity, which is also found in old Arabic traditions,
concerns t h e breathing technique used in playing the instruments.
The
breathes in through his nose without any break in
his playing - a feat which is made possible by the use of the
mouth as a wind-reservoir. Ap;lrt from a slight darkening of the
tone, the sound can be prolonged without interruption more o r
less indefinitely."

l-I ARMONIC RATIOS AND PROPORTIONS IN NATURE

\'M deep enaagh, aadyori rrr rr~~,rirdrliy;
the heart of rzature being r v ~ v rr,/rrremusic, ifyou can only rrvic l) 11. - Thomas Carlyle

I';lsr.i~~.~tingly
enough, a nunihcr of the most basic of all t h r f:~ct*: . I I I ~ I
- nature disp1;iy ihc very same ratios that arc. I I I I I I I ~1 1~1
S . Hans Kayser is the author of sevcral hoolib. wl11411
scientific fashion that the w h o l c - n ~ ~ n ~ lFt.I[
~ .1 i1 P* I
I I I I I S ~ C ; I II I ; I ~ ~ ~ ~ I Isuch
~ C Sas the octave, the thirtl. i'it'lll . l 1 1 1 1 1 1 r 1 1 1 r 11
r o r r c \ ~ ) o ~ liJo an underlying numerical fr;~rnc.wr
!I lc r .r l..! III!:
III
11c-rriistry,; L I I ) I I I ~ Cphysics, crystallography. . I \ I I . o l l r r l l l \ l , .I! 1111r.~
1111 r ,
6

' P I

'1'1 I I;. SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

i 1 1 ~ . t l ~ , t l ~botany,
sis,

etc.8'
1\11 I 11 rc~ccntly,the quite well-known musician, Gary Peacock,
1111 1.1 I I I ~ ) his
I ~ ~career to delve into the same area, undertaking a
i o ~ ~ ~ ~ -study
y c ; ~ofr molecular biology and organ physiology. Among
Ilia findings was that the relationships in the periodic table of
clcnicnts, from which all matter is formed, resemble the overtone
structure in music. Peacock says, 'It becomes clearer and clearer t o
nie that the actual structure of tone in music and the actual structure
of matter are the same.' I n other words: matter is music. Other
researchers have found a relationship between sound frequencies and
various physical - even notational - shapes. For example, j40 vs.
300 frequency cycles per second displayed on an oscilloscope
produces a minor seventh shape.
I n his book, The Power of Limits,86 Gyorgy D o n i has traced in
detail the exact similarities between the proportions and ratios found
in the various branches of sciencc. Throughout the book these
proportions and ratios arc not spccific;llly pointed out t o be the same
as those present in music. I7ut o n ;m r;trly page Doczi himself
explains why. Quite simply, L111 of ~ h tl;u;~
c
in his book, which links
physics with biology with astmnonly wi111;~rc.l~itecture
a n d so forth,
can be explained in terms of music, hut this would open up t o o vast
a subject in itself. Nevertheless, his Ix)ok i:, i~ll~crcritly
associated
with the principles of music from covcr t o covr.1.. 'I'llr r;ctios which in
music are known as the fifth and fourth inrcrv;~lsoccur again and
again throughout nature. O n e highly specific p;~r:tllrlbctween music
and botany demonstrated by Doczi invo1vt.s I llc. :irr;lngc.ment of the
veins of leaves o n either side of the centr;~l\rc-111. Some leaves,
analysed in detailed diagrams, reveal nothink: I(..;s Illan a perfect
occurrence of counterpoint in the ratios and ~)~-ollo~-rions
t o which
thc vcins are arranged to the left and to thc rig111 4 1 1 r l ~ stem.
c
There arc in particular a number of fundamc,u~;~l
occurrences in
naturc of' the riumber seven. There are seven rrrws in the periodic
table of clcnicnts (hydrogen, helium to Aourint., Ilcbc,n to chlorine,
argon t o brol~~inc',
krypton t o iodine, xenon tr) ,I.,~;LI
ine, and radon
to element l 1 7). A slightly different way of o r d c ~ , i the
~ ~ gelements is
t o give the t w o r;irc-earth series basically thcit- own rows in the
table, but still we find that this gives us scvcn rows of stable
elements, these rows beginning respectively with hydrogen, lithium,
sodium, potassium, rubicliurn, cesium and hafnium. The seven rows
of the periodic table of clcnicncs arise out of the fact that a number
of different elements tend to display similar physical properties, and
are therefore listed together. ( T o give an example: helium, neon,

THE PHYSICS OF T H E O M

229

;ind krypton are all inert gascs, ;incl ~ ( . r ~ t1101

l
1 0 cng;cgc in
All this is highly su!:~:c-~~ivr01' lllc I~o.;sik)ility
I 11.t1I IIC seven rows of elements reprtscnt I lit- ~ . ; I r.!:o~-ic.:;
I
( ) I i-l(.lncnts
r v l ~ i 11
t embody the frequencies and proprrl ic-q of (*;1t.11
01 111rsrvcn
111.1jorTones. (The number seven ;11so O C C I I ~ Y W,II);III I I ( , 1r111n;tn
Ill.lroniy, in such things as the sevcn m;tjor IIO~IIIIIII:II
! : l . ~ ~ l t I : . ;111tl 111r
oqc.vc.n
ventricles o r cavities of the skull.)
I'rogressing upward in scale from ;tron~ic(.II.I~II.III,. 1 0 1111.wot.IcI
c,rystals, w e find that crystals too arc iorn1.1l l C'.II C-!:,)l.i/c.tl ;I(IY 11.to seven different types or cryst;tl systc*r115.' I ' l l c . .:rvc.r~C . I . ~ \ I . I I
*y,crrnsarise out of the fact that crystals tcl~tl11 I IwI( )II!: I ( o11c0111
I II scven basic geometrical forms : cubic. rhoml)c ~llr~Ir..~l.
. . I I ~ ' Y :III ~I , I:~I.
I I iclinic, monoclinic, trigonal and orthorhoml71c. I'II~I-, r II(*I,~. . I I . C
,.l.vcn basic forms of crystal, rock a n d mineral. 'I'liic ; I ~ ; I ~ I >I I I , I I I \ 1 1 1
r l ~ c . seven types as being literally the respective cry\l;~lli;l;~~io~i.,,
wirliin the mineral world, of the seven major frcclr~cncie~
01 1111.
Word. Is the W o r d truly so far removed from our sensory c;cl>:tc,ili(.s
. I I I ~cveryday life, then, or is it simply that w e refuse to sc'ri
O n the subject of crystals, modern esotericists havc ofrc.11rr.c 0111111c.ndedcrystals, pictures of crystals, and models of the 1no1rcul.11
.tlrrlcture of crystals as a subject for meditation. Contemplation i~pori
I l~eirgeometry is said to provide a route by which the conscious~~csro f Inan can attune itself to the various qualities of the Consciousness
I )f the Supreme.
II~:#,II

I \ v ~ l ~ i ( . ;reactions.)
~l

1 11

1l111y;

I i A R M O N I C PRINCIPLES IN
I'SYCHOLOGY OF MAN

THE NATURAL

I begin to understand more deeply thr rs.vence of our art (music) and it.$
cdtmtntal Power over the hirvrnr~saril, /Man, being a creature of nature
and subject to the cosmic itrf1rtmr.c.r /Illz/ inform all earthly beings, must
~ir~cc/.rhave been under the .srtlrly uf't/)rl/ mu.ric from his earliest dqs;
l,/i organism reverberated wit/, it.; oibrdtion and received its rhyrhtlrir-

- Bruno Walter

trtrlrr11se.r.

'I'!I~.
1111rsva1s
and harmonic.; of nlusic, mirroring the geometry t r f I 11r
I ~ c . , r v c - ~ i \ may
,
also be prc.;cnt 111 some mysterious way within 1101
I I I I I ~l l ~ l~hysical
r
form of man, but also within the patr crllk*I 11 III.,
I ~ ~ y c l i o l o gIty .has oftcn been pointed out, and evcri c ' l l t l ~ r . 1 ) o l b k . .
wrictcn on the sl~bject,that the architecture of prrviotl*. I I I I I ~ - . I I I I ~ Y I
tll\l~l.~yrcl
r;~tiosand proportions such as arc fnuntl ~ I 1111I
1 1 1 1 1~ \ .II~.
III
rl1114c.I:rnm the constructions of ancient (;rc.c-~c. 1 1 1 I 1 1 t t . . (
I 111.
I I I I ) I * ~ . recent ~iiedieval and Gothic pcricl[l\. ~ I I ~ . I ( . r..ul*.l
III.III~
111

'THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

h~ildingsbased almost entirely upon the intervals of

r.~vr.fifth, fourth and so on. The same ratios are also found in the
W I I I lis of the g a n d master painters. At times these ratios in art and
. I I ( l~itcctureoccur with a frequency and precision that can only be
(.ortscious and deliberate; at other times it seems likely that the ratios
were included unconsciously, because they 'seemed right'. Yet of the
conscious and unconscious occurrence of such harmonic ratios, it is
difficult to say which is the more astounding and ridden with deep
implications.
That such ratios can occur unconsciously seems to be supported
by the phenomenon known as Ur-song. This phenomenon takes us
deeper still into the natural framework of the human mind. For Ursong is the name given to a fundamental type of melody that infants
everywhere in the world scem to sing quite spi)ntaneously, without
having learned it from their parents or the cultitre around them. O n
the face of it, there is no obvious reason why children, if they
melodies spontaneously, should not I~cginwith any of the
infinite variety and number of different toncs ;IIIJ
tone-relationships.
The notes of the Western cfi;itonic scnlc arc., ;ifter all, but a few
points on a spectrum of tone-frctlircncic-s t1l.11 :~c,tuallyincludes an
infinite number of points or minutcly-tliifcr~~r~t
pitches. Yet in all
lands, children from the age of ciglltceri rl~clntl~c
t o two and a half
years have been found to spontancoi~sl~
sin!: mc.lociic fragments
with the intervals of second, minor third. nntl rn.~ic)rthird. Thence, in
their second and third years, while systemar i t . ; l l l y c-xploring the use
of these intervals in what may be a very i r n p o ~ . t ;clcvelopmental
~~~~
psychological process, children then g o on t c I i ~ l c . l l l c l ~fourths
'
and
fifths. (A descending third is a pitch differcnt.~(11. interval such as
that between 'this' and 'old' in the tune 'Tl~i\o l t l rnan . . .'. An
example of a fourth is the interval between 'Don ' .~rrcl'-ald' in 'Old
MacDonald had a farm'.) Only at the agc of' thrrc. cloes the particular musical style of their own culture bcgin I I I influence them,
thus putting nn cnd to their spontaneous and i~rtlcpmdentexpressions of the Ur-song. (UYis a German prefix for ori!:inal, primeval.)
In 197 3 the conlposer and conductor Leon:trtl Hcrnstein, in his
Charles Eliot Norton Icctures at Harvard, descrilxd the Ur-song of
the world's children as an ; ~ r c h e t ~ ppattern.
al
H c said that the song
consists of a repetitive, dcsccnding minor third, often accompanied
by another descending step to a fourth. In his opinion, Ur-song is
the joint product of the pliysic;~llaws of harlrnny, and of the innate.
genetic pattern of all human beings."
The concept of the diatonic scale being written into the genetic
I

s.1111l~1t.e
of

I II

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

of man is in itself full of inip1ic;rtions. .Yet

wr. should
not
...
.
..
MJN!~
.~lw;iysimmediately assume that all sirch i r ~ r i
lc trap
1111kcd
to genes, chromosomes, etc. for t o c111
l1 1hc
111
~naterialism. Ur-song may bc drnior~!
I l11 ~ ~ gprocesses
ht
and the natural flow 01' bncclc )usnc.\c \ W rr1c.11I 'IS so
~r~linhibited
and spontaneous in inf;~nrs). I ~ I . tl~c~rrr~c~lv~~c
:.IIIIII.~IOW
lrnkcd to the harmonic
which t l ~ r; t ~ ~ ~ . i Ir~~cl~l lci c ~ 1
v c0~IN.~ l
I llc foundations of the universe.

'TOWARDS A GRAND UNIFIED FIELD TI I E( )I( Y ( ) I

I'HYSICS
Olrr data thus far suggests that the entire univt-rev I I I . I ~ . 1 1 1 1 - 1 1 . I)r
. .~l
11;lscdupon vibration; that vibration may be the l u n r l ; ~ ~ r ~I cI . I.I~I I ~I ~ ~
111' each and every energy form known t o sciencc. Y 1.1 t I r ~ I- r ~l j r - I l 9 . 1 1 1 1 , I
I~ossibilitymore astounding and mind-stretching ~ l i : ~; nI I I ~wc- I1.lvlm
yct touched upon: the potential of bringng forth ;I ' ~ ~ ; I I I I 1I 1 1 1 i l~ r . r l
I icld theory'.
W e have already seen that, though using their own tcrnlinl l l ~ j ~ : ~ ,
1)oth the authors of the Upanishads and the ancient Chinc\c. wc.~c.
~.crtainthat a form of sacred vibration was the source ; t r l t l 1.1--11
rlirture of all the forces in the universe, including light (whirl1 wc1111cl
.~lsoinclude the entire electromagnetic spectrum, since light ic 1,111
orlr narrow waveband within it). Let us note in this resprct 111r
interesting fact that ultrasonic sound vibrating a glass rod causes 1 1 1 ~ '
rod to emanate both heat and light. In other words, this is a drmonstrable example of sound energy becoming the energies of both hc;it
kind light.
Physicists are today searching for Einstein's dream, a unified
I'icld theory that could, in onc go, cxplain all the forces of nature.
'I'hcre is even the hope of finding ;I grand unified field theory that
would Icombine in one theorctic:il cxpl;~nationand one basic underlyin!; h)rfce all the dynamic qu:~li~ics
o f the smallest and most fi~nd:~1111~111:l1
yet known 10 scirnce. Such a discovery woirltl
revolutionize all of .;cic.~lceand all of life, openin!: 1111
vnble technological po.;.;il)ilities.
~rdingto the data wr h;tve discussed so far, thc pllv\lt ie.1..
~r~vo~vcxl
in this search may rlo worse than to look t o disirttr~n, I . .
Ilc-inl; the key to such a discovery. In their search for t111- I I ~ I I I I I . I I ~
ljowrr hchind all manifestation, they should, perli;tp~.,I I I I ~ II!#IIII\.
I,yp,~cs11rr. starcmcnt of St John:
e

Word, and t h Wnr,l

~
1,:rl

t , s t t l ~ (,,I,/, , r r t , /

2 3.2

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

the W o r d was God ... A l l things were made by him; and without
him was not any thing made that was made.

THE PHYSICS 01; Tli l i O M

~ l l i l l matter
~:
and dynamic energy, 1-1I - I I . , '1r1ill11.1.' ( X I I I ~ I ~ Cwith
S
t h ~
1 1 1 illlcval Celestial Waters of the a n c i r ~lil:ylfli.~~~s.
~~
f<y 'c!yn;~nlic
tl,~.~c'
is meant God made rnanifcst; IT~(';II>~IIJ;
1111.
. L I ( . S ~ ~f
( ~ Ithc
~I
Word into the Celestial Waters. Tllc tlrscrnt 01 IIII',V I I , I - ; I I ~ W I~O ~ C V
/:ivcs rise, at its different frequency-lrvrl.;. I r ) ,111 I l ~ r~ . i ~ ~ ~
I lil'lcrent forms of energy. But the imll() l , ~ .
i s , . 111.11 ; i l l IIIV
It I I ~
~ w nenergies represent only the de.frt*~rt
1.
11 O I I I S I I ~ I - ~ I
1 1 1 1 0 matter. These energies represent ~ , I I I 1111.
~ I ~ ~ ~ ! ; ~ tlrn~il'i~.;~.
r<\i~r
of the vibration - from cosmic I.,IYS IIIIOII!:II ',IIIII w.Ivrs ;IS
slrgnetism, electricity, light and heat, :111d~ I I ~ I, 1,1 1 t l i l
,.c 1 1 1 1 1 ~ 1 . I I I ( I
~.tngible,material vibrations.
'l'he realization of the implication o f this rl1;l y provitlt. III(. kr.y 1 1 ,
llnlock the scientific discovery of the agc. Fr)r c i - ~ ~ ; ~1 ,iI cl Il r'%r~lc'l.it
qrl~ools which are said to have preserved int;~cr ~lcr11c.1-11:.
01 I I I ~ .
\ o~
c brigirlal ancient wisdom have this t o say: that thc v i l w ; ~ ~
tloes not move in 'straight lines' - but, in a scnsc, in circlrs. 11
wordS, the W o r d does not forever become progressively 11f.m
vibration. Like the reflection of a ripple off the bank of a pollcl, 111r
vibratory force reaches a point in its 'arc of descent' ;II w l ~ i c l ~
cxtrernes meet, after which the vibrations begin ascending in fi,c.[lrrcrr~v
I , R c ~ to the planes of Spirit. The point of the return is arrivcxl ; I t
Iwtween cathodicity and magnetism. From here on, just as v i b r ; ~ t i o ~ ~
hrought substance into being, even so does it once more carry it out
of being. Thus there exists, it is said, a 'Night Side of Nature' - ;I
rcalm of nature and of force which it is possible for man t o tap, and
in which all the known forces have their opposites. Here, positivc
polarity becomes negative, cold hccon~csheat, and gravity becomcs
gravity-repulsion. Between thcsr two rxtremes. a neutral point can
1,c reachcd, and this provides t l ~ kcy
t
to tht ~racticalapplication of
anti-gravity as well as numerous olhcr developments.
,

The last great unification within physics took place over a century
ago when Maxwell revealed that magnrtism and electricity were
really different apsects of the samc forr,c. It is literally the result of
this unification that today we have television sets, microwave ovens,
and thousands of other inventions. If W C wcre to tap the source of
an even more fundamental unification of forces, the possibilities
would be almost boundless. N o mattcr how mind-wrenching these
possibilities may be, the potential to rc:~lizcthcm follows by straightforward and uncomplex logic oncc i t I > c c o ~ ~possible
~cs
to convert all
forms of energy into any other. The potcnti;~lfor technological
advancement that a grand unificd ficl'l tllcory would open up would
actually be no more magical or mir:~ci~lo~~s
I ~ I ; I I I that opened up by
Maxwell. After all, a television srt or tligi~i~l
watch would have
seemed miraculous to the n i n c t t . c ~ n t l ~ - c c * ~l11;tn.
i ~ ~ ~ ~just
y
as the
~otentialsstemming from a nrw, wic11.r 1111.or~
\ o ~ ~ r just
l d as startling
to us at first. For instance, clrctric~iry , li,:l11 , I I I ~ I 11r;tt would all be
interchangeable with gravip. This we I I I I ~ II I I J I\(. i~ JX bssible to develop
machines for levitation. to cnnvcri gr;1v11y i l l 1 1 li!;l~lor heat, or even
to make gravity from clectricity. il~l(.~,!!y~ . I ) I I I ~ I)c
I transferred
(probably in the form of what modcrn p l ~ y \ i c I .rlls 'gluons') from
higher planes of existence into the physic ;II I ~ I . ~; I ~I I~~vice-versa.
(.
Thus, instant materialization and dcrnnl ( * I . I . I ~I ( ~
II
111' / ,should
be
possible as a matter of course.
+ I . into the
Opening the door for waves of forcc t o ( . I ~ I (Is(.~ly
material world would also enable man to t : ~ l , i l l f i r ~ i r c . sources of
omnipresent energy. Such supplies of infinite., o ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ i l > energy
rcscnt
would expose as false the very concept that V I I ~ . I . ! : ~ is 'limited' or
that its available supply is 'dwindling'. Therc :II.~.
~.r;~lly
no limits to
what might become possible if ever a grand unil ic ;I[ i c 111 theory were
brought forth. 111rffcct, it would be the 'theory' o I tllc Word itself;
and as the Bible :~J:cmantlyreminds us. ' W ~ ~(;ocl
I I all things are
possible'. All thc cvidcnce seems to tell us th;tt ;III of nature does
indeed f~~nction
by virtue of one fundamentill iorcc. The theory,
then, can be said to bc ;ilre:ady there, just waiting to be plucked from
the tree of abundancc.
Relevant to all of this ;irr the teachings of modern esoteric
schools: that though the univcrsc and its many diverse phenomena
and forms of energy may appear complex, the Creation is in essence
extremely simple. Only two force principles are at work in everyO,

ASTROLOGY AS THE MUSIC OF THE SPHERES

There's not the ~mallestor17 ,(d,il-hthe# behuldest,
I3ut in his motion like an 11t1,4clrings,
\l111 quiring to theyorttqs-ryc,l/cherzxbims;
.\rrih harmony is m imuror~alsouls,
whilrt 1hi.r muddy zJestirrt'of decay
Dorh grossly close it m, we cannot bear it.

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

i.ll;~ngcaccording to the movements of the sun, the moon and the
I~lanets.The study of the effects of these changes in vibration was
thc science of astrology. According to the ancients, the astrological
harmonics change in such a way as to affect all of matter and life.
This idea is widely held. Though it receives its most famous
exposition in Pythagoras' Harmony of the Spheres, a similar
concept can bc traced to a number of ancient cultures. In the above
quotation we find the notion emcrging even as comparatively
recently as Shakespeare. (Hcre, Sliakcspeare also agrees with the
traditional esoteric concept that the clivine man can 'tune in' to, and
be aware of, the heavenly harmony, hut that the ordinary dense
mortal is too far out of alignnient with tl~i.; harmony even to be
aware of it. This much is clear iron1 tlic. last three lines of the
quotation..)
What evidence is there for the scirncc- ( 1 1 :rstrology being valid,
and for the concept that it is I>a.;c.tl I I ~ M I I I vibrations from the
heavens ?
Whatever its modus o p ~ r r l ~ dni;~y
i IN.. .~\trologyitself is rapidly
emerging from the misty rc;~lms01. ~ I I ~ ) ~ . I . i\ I~ i o l i ,newspaper columns
itsr-ll . I \ :I v;ilid science. It
and ignorant laughter. to cst;~l>lisl~
accomplishes this the more frccl y ; I I I ~l l ; ~11'\51
i ~ ~ when it enters the
halls of science in disguise, rlndcr ;IntIrllc.r II.IIII(':
[here exists a
growing body of information cullc~il 1ro111 ~,lt~sics,statistics,
astronomy, chemistry, psychology and, in 1x11-I
i c I I ~ . I ~I)iology,
,
which
indicates all manner of influences which t11c. * < I I I I . I III' moon and the
planets exert over life on earth. Astrology C l v , 1 1 1 ~I IIII(#I. name smells
just as swcet!
-4 number of marine creatures such as oy\tc-lL4II.IVI. Iwcn found to
be sensitive t o the position of the moon irrc\llc.c I I V ~ .01' whether or
not they are in water and can feel the t i d ~ . ~ ' ()lher
' ~ ~ ' ' creatures
the worm
respond to the moon's 28-day cycle. Onr. of 111(~11i,
Platynereir drr/m~rilii,swarms to the surface of I 11(. #,(..Icvery time the
moon reach- its last quarter.9u It has been diu ovcrrd that potato
tubers react to thr position of the moon: thcy tli<pl:~ychanges such
as in their rnetnhollc rate according t o whethn or not the moon is
above the horizon, i\ :II its zenith, or whether i t i\ setting."
As for the influcncc o f the sun, it is now conimonly known that
all manner of events - lx)litical, social, military, scismolcgical,
atmospheric and biolog~c;~l
- occur in cycles of about eleven years,
apparently following the regular eleven-year cyclcs of sunspot
activity. By altering the earth's magnetic field, sunspot activity has
been found t o affect the internal processes of human beings. This

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

11

tll~lcncesimultaneously affects

people

living in tli ff'crcnt rcgions of

r l ~ c * world, and has been found to continuc rhvcn in cxpcrir~lrntal

..~~I,jccts
placed six hundred feet under ground."'^"'
'['he moon also affects geomagnetic activity o n c:~rrli.;lnd this
I I I . I ~account for at least somr of its docunicntr~linll~lrlicrsovcr lil'c.
11 was reported by Harold L. Stolov xntl A. (;. W . (.:;~lnc.rol~i t 1
1064 that their analysis of 3 1 years of d ; ~ trrvc;~lr(l
:~
; I I I :tvr.l,:isr 01' ;I
I I ~ I per
I ~ cent decrease in geomapcric :~ctivity tl~lt.in~!
111rS ~ V ~ tI.~ys
I I
I~rcccdingthe f d moon, and a four per crnt :Ivrr;l!!r i11c rv;I.;c t l u l . i ~ ~ { :
111cseven days following the full moon. 11iot1,1:h 1111-.~(. 10111- prr i.(*tit
li!:urcs may not seem large, a statisticill ;~li;ilvsi\\IIOW\ 111.11 III(.Y
II;IVC 'a less than five per cent probability ot' I i ; ~ \ ~ i i ~( j, I: ( I I I . I - I ' ~ ~ I ) y
r JI:ILIC~
alone.94
The planets are much farther away from r:~rthth.~n1111. 111111111,
,tnJ sonne are at a far greater distance from us t h ; u ~cvclt ll\r .;r111, Y c-I
I llcre is strong evidence that they too exert an influencr c)vcnl.rvc-l~l'i
t 11c
I 111 eartlh. J. H. Nelson demonstrated over 30 years :tgr) I 1i:11
l)o~itionof the planets it is possible to predict changrss in 1I1r clln,
which in turn affect the earth's magnetic field, thus spoilin!: r;ltlio
~rceptions.~The alterations in earth's magnetic field ;~lstI ;I f'l'rrt
living creatures. Nerve activity, for example, is known to hr sul~tly
1111luencedby all such changes. Also, as the planets move arouncl in
tllcir orbits, corresponding variations have been found t o take pl;~ce
i l l the electrical potential of t r ~ c s . ~ "
Regarding human beings - ; ~ n dapproaching closer to the subject
OS astrology proper - Michxcl G a i ~ ~ u e l has
i n conducted a series of
*.~;~tistical
surveys over a numhcr of decades into the correlations
llrtween character and the astrologic;tl conditions at birth. His
I'indings have been widely rcportcd, and the reader may well be
I:~tttiliarwith them already. Thc most important of them are sumil in his book, The Cortrtit- Cloc.~,s."'Briefly, Gauquelin found
o be strong statistici~lct)rrcl;~rionsbetween the astrological
present at birth and t t ~ tr ype of profession later taken I I by
~
111, ii\licluals. For example, pllysici;~nsand medical doctors rendtd t t I
II.IVI. I,rm born when Mars or Sitturn had either just risen or li:~tl
. ~ t r . ~ i ~ l to
r t I their highest posit ion in the sky. O n the other Ii;~ncl.I I I ~ .
. I ~ I it. I ~ ~ > f e s s i oincluding
ns,
musicians, painters and writrr.:. I r.tl~lrcl
111 11 1 0 I~lrnishindividuals who had been born at such tin~c-~.
A ~;',III~:
)111itc,ri l l thc birth sign tended to be found in thr 11i1-I 11 11.11 I , , I 11
1" ,111 ic.i;~~ls
and soldicrs, but rarely in those of scicnt i \ t <

'

i6.l

.' 11,

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

'SHE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

and hisses of the magnetosphere and beamed them

. .I I I ~whines
earth. These were then speeded up and played through a

'1'1 I E IyLANETS SUITE

All 111ismay mean that there is, after all, something to astrology.
liut is there any evidence that the astrological influences of the
I ~ c ; ~ v ebodies
n l ~ work in some way that is related to vibration, or to
:I sort of celestial music?
Perhaps there is. From the study of our
own planetary body we do know that it is possible for planets to
'chime' like a gigantic musical instrument. Seismographs first
revealed that the earth 'rings' with deep vibrations when the
powerful Chilean earthquake of 1 9 6 0 was noticed to have sent
oscillations throughout the sphere, the 'chime' being reduced in
'volume' by a half every two days. Of course, these vibrations were
far deeper than could be heard as audible sound, having a wavefrequency of li 3.1 and also 54.7 minutes. Since 1960 many other
chimes, more subtle in volume, have been recorded on these same
two pitches. (Interestingly enough, these pitches of the earth are
twenty octaves below the audible range of man, whereas the tone of
the atom is twenty octaves :thovc i t ; rllus the hearing of man is
placed mid-way bctwccn tllr wo~.l~ls
of t l ~ cn1;tcrocosrn and those of
the microcosm.)'"
it would be quite conIf other planc~s.ilso L ~ I ~ II I II I111is
( . I:tsl~iol~,
ceivable for tl1c*111
I(
I : l ( l i . t ~r (-11.1
t I I )nl.t!:rit.i i t v il~rittionsof extremely
low frequency ;rcross 111t. v o i t i . 111us inciu~~in!:1.c.sonatlce and harmonics in cnch orlirr. (:t.rt;ti~~ly
rllc pl;tncts :Irr ' i l l c ol~tact'with one
anothcr in rill 11i);llrrr;tngcs of' tlir electronl;~~:~lrr
i t spectrum, since
radiatiom of radio ;~ntlother waves. Yet
each srncl O I I I l)owc.rf;~l
there art rvrn inilic;t~ionsthat incredibly deep vil)r;ttions in the freqilency r:tn!:ca of only one wave per forty seconil~(111c;tningthat the
W;IVCS i11.c 1 ~ 1 c . 1 1 s('vc11million miles long) travrl tl~roughthe flux of
space."" 11s yr.[. tl~cscwaves are still cloaked in n~ystrry.
Thr sun i~sc.IS11;tsbeen described as a 'grr;tr nltlsical instrument'
by Dr M:trtin Pomerantz of the Bartol Rcsr-;trch Foundation,
Newark, I)cl:tw;~~.c..
I>r Pomerantz and others 1i:tvc detected oscillations on the .;IIII'S surf;tce which they bclicve originitte from acoustic
or vibratory w;tves inside the fiery sphere. Eighty overtones or
different kinds of vihr;ttion have been observcd. with periods of
from two to eight rnint~t~s.
These oscillntions. :IS well as the radio waves of space, have been
transposed into audihlc sollnd. The results, though interesting,
cannot really be said t o correspond with music as we know it.
However, Saturn's magnetosphere produces waves which, when
transposed into sound, have been described as 'a slow, dreamy
melody'. When Voyager 2 drew dose to the ringed world it ~ i c k e d
)

237

"11

iynthesizer, and the waves were indeed found to consist of a

f melody. O f the waves, D r Hunt, a British scientist who
q%rtllnccl
with NASA on the Voyager project muses that, 'Perhaps
111c-y will reach Top of the Pops in years to come.'
II' 1 . 1 planets
~
do radiate tones across the void to each other. then
1.1, Iors such as their relative orbits, orbital speed, ancl distance from
~ I I Iitnother
I.
could be expected to be very important f;tc.tors in deterrr1111ingthe harmonic results. This sets one's mind imnlediatcly to
t l ~ ~ ~ ~ of
k i tBode's
lg
Law.
I\odcls Law is one of the most clear-cut astrnnr~~iiical
rnrssagrs
111.11 the universe has to offer us in order to convince man o f thc
~l~lct.r.rnt
order and meaning within the Creation. It was J o l l ~ n I).
~i
I ' I ~ I I IinS ,1766, who first discovered the Law, but six years 1;itcr
It~l1.111n
Bode did a better job of drawing attention to it, so t l i ; ~ tit
.~i~r.rwards
became known as Bode's Law. Titius had noticrd that
111 of the planets known to astronomers in his day possrsscct mean
( $ 1 l i ~ a ldistances from the innermost planet, Mercury, thcsc. orl)its
I l1.4 I ~mingprogressively greater by the ratio of 2 :1 as tllc planets
I l l e rr;tsed in distance from the sun. That is, Earth was twicr ;IS far
11,1111Mercury's orbit as was Venus, Mars was twice as f:tr fro111
h1rrcxry as was Earth, and so on. The ratio 2 :1 is, of coursc, the
I .tlio of the octave itself, and so it was as if thc pla~lcrr;Iornicd a
11,rin of octaves, each next planet reprcsrntin~nnc oc.~;tvc.The
tl~*.t;tncesinvolved were not exactly of thc r;llio 2 : I , hltt wcrc near
t.,lou~hto suggest to early Europcan ;tstrnrtorllc.rsrll;ct a definite law
: sort might be involved.
vever, there was a gap in t h c ch:tirt 01' octaves: there existed
~ w n$anet between Mars ;t11t1 111pilcrwhere, according to
r11 0 1 1 t - . l-'hen, in 1 8 0 1, Giuseppe
Law, there should havr I~cl
l i t 1 with ;.I diameter of 480 miles
discovered Ceres, a planc~c:
~rbitedalmost exact1y whrr Hodc's Law had predicted that
I'
. I I I I . I I I P ~should. Not only did Illis cilscovery fulfil for Bode's Law
~ I i r b.1.111tlard
supporting facrr~rnec:cssary for any scientific law: that
1 1 m . l , ~ , l ~ l t l be able to predict fttrtllcr discoveries; but Piazzi had not
1 1 . 1 1 1 111r Iraw in mind at all when he discovered Ceres. H e had
, . I I I I ~ J yI III.~II
making routine observations for a catalogue of star posi1 1 4 111.. 1 ..11 W , hundreds of other ~lanetoidswere also discovcrcci
tr11tl1111 1 1 1 ~ . s:irnt orbit, and the orbit became known as tlir nstrroid
' I l l ( . .ts~croids
appear to be the remains of a plztnct whicll oncc
I, uIIrlwr.tl tl~i-,orhit, but was somehow mystcrinrlsly ilrsrroycti. This
U

111.11

.l

IH

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

,rnlcr planet has by some been posthumously called Maldek.

Morc discoveries were to follow in the fulfilment of Bode's Law.
1 s t )I. since 17 72 there have come the discoveries of Uranus, Neptune
.11it1 Pluto. Of these three, Uranus and Pluto have mean orbits
cxtrcmely close to the exact distances necessary to complete two
further octaves. Neptune has sometimes been cited by reductionist
materialists as evidence that the Law is no law at all, since the planet
does not fall upon an octave position. Yet in fact it is located almost
exactly half--way between Uranus and Pluto, as though to fill in the
half-octave position. Table 3 shows the exact distances of the
octaves going out from Mercury, taking Earth's orbit to be two
units out, and shows too the actual distances of the planetary orbits
themselves.
11

Table 3 : Bode's Law

Planet

Perfect Octaves:
units of distance
from Mercury

Mean Orbits:
;ictual units of
distance from Mercury

Mercury

Venus

1 .l

Earth

Mars

3.7

Asteroids

Aplwox

Jupiter

16

16

Saturn

32

30.j

Uranus

64

62.6

Neptune
Pluto

( 6 4 X 1+=96)

98.9

128

130.1

Could there be further planets yet to be discovered, also keeping

to the predicted orbits of the Law? If so, the nearest would be twice
as far out as Pluto, and therefore not an easy body to locate.
What do contemporary astronomers themselves say of the Law?
Smaller astronomical texts rcfer to the Law merely as 'a curious
numerical relationship', without even mentioning the essential fact
that it completes a series of octaves. More detailed texts content

239

1111-~risclves
with the observation that, 'It is probably a mere
tttl~~cidcnce'!In fact, a science based upon m;lterialism can say
~llttl~ing
else, no matter how many morc pl;tnrts 11li#l11.yrt be
lI16.(1,vcredin accordance with the Law. (Thr d;iv lipon which thc
Y I',~ctor'of God is finally admitted and rrincc~rpor:~lccl
Il;~ckinto
IIII. scientific outlook of man will hr a siKniiic;~nrr l ; ~ y indrccl.
I'rrhaps no event more than this will sipn;~lrhr ii>rni;~l
;lrr.iv;~lo f lhc
1\1l11;1rian
Age, in which religion is to hc mrlrcs scic-ntil'ir,, ;111dsci~ni.(religious, for the perfect wedding o1'tIir I WO.)
1111,r.c
llode's Law concerns itself with the distan1.c.s 0111 I'ro~iiM c.rcl1l.y
~ I rllc
I orbits of the planets; but therc may ;il'ic, rxisr olhrr. I~:~rl~lonicI lws. unnoticed by astronomers, which conccrn t l ~ c u cl~c.c.tI.~
111 r l l c
Itl.~~lrts'
movements around in their orbits. Litcr;~lly.tIi~.\v.;l~c.c.tls. O I I
I 111- harmonic level, would represent the planets' pitcl~-l't.c.cl~~c.~~~
in. 11
I I I . I ~ therefore be the case that when planets comc i r l l c , C O I I ~ I I I I I1 i o 1 1
w 11 l1 one another (i.e. become arranged in a more-or-lcss cr ~.II,I;III
I I I 11.
l:,ulig out from the sun) that 'chords' are produced. Wh;tr is ir~rvrc*s~
III,I!
in this respect is that a number of regular planetary cc~njl~rj<~ion.;
t . 1 1 ~over particular periods of time which, in their ratios 1.0 C:I,.II
1*111rr,
reflect with considerable accuracy the ratios of length wliic.li
. I I I- rlccessary to produce the diatonic notes of an octave.
This is best illustrated in diagrammatic form. Figure 3 shows ;I
I I I I ~representing an octave, divided into seven intervals by cieht
'

#lt

I !~:rrrc3 :Planetaty Cot~junctronsas 'Chords'

1 1 1 ~ . IIIII. tq1111cl ;is well, for instance, be the string of .I I l l r r - \IIIII,:I*II

.I! i~~~trurnent.
Planetary conjunctions t;~kr r i l . ~ c r I , V ( -III I I I V
1,
r r ctirll: 1 0 there samc ratios that divide up rhr Ivn!:~ 11 I r t I Ilr *,r I 111);.

IIIII.~I~
4 0

.'.II)

'SHE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I I I I I I ~cli;igram,
~
the numbers below the line, beginning with 24 on
I I I ~Icli, show the numbers of years involved; while above the line
.II.C ~llciicatedthe conjunctions of each planet with the sun and the
c;rrth; the planets involved being represented as two- and three-digit
rlumbers. These numbers indicate the number of conjunctions which the
planet has made with the sun and the earth within that time period.
(Since these would always be bound to occur as the two planets
continue in their orbits, they are not statistically important.)
T o take Jupiter as an example then, it encounters a conjunction
with the sun and the earth every 398 days. This being a little more
than a year, it means that Jupiter comes into conjunction eleven times
every twelve earth-years. .4s it happens. each eleventh conjunction
takes place virtually exactly every twelve years. and so we can see
that Jupiter appears on the diagram at the 24th-year, 36th-year and
48th-year points. What is more, every 2 4 years it comes into conjunction nct only with the earth, hut ,~lsowith Mcrcury and Venus,
making a four-planet line-up. 'Twclvc ycb;lrslater, on the 36th-year
point, Jupiter encounters ;i conjullrtio~~
riot only with the earth, but
also with the main portiol~of t l ~ r,i*.rrroicl hclt. Then, finally, as
shown in the right of thc di,cgr,tni, 1111. ~ + X I I Iyc;tr sces the rcpetition
of its conjunction with M c r c ~ ~ r; y~ n dV C I I I ,I I~I .I ~thc completion of
the octave.
Only further statistical evaluation i ~ ~ l eilc.tc~~lninc
!
whether or
not this table of data is open to criticism o n I wrr points which occur
to one in looking at it. Firstly, the data wo~lltlllrrtl to be examined
statistically in some detail before its real worrl~01 significance could
be known, since possibly such conjunctioli.; would always be
expected to occur, through chance. Seconrtly. t11(- tl;~taused is from
the standard astrological tables. However, .;II~.II data is earthoriented. including only conjunct~onswith t h c c.;tl.tl~,wherras there
secrns no obvious reason why significant cor~j~l~~ciions
excluding
earth. such as could be gleaned (at length) Ilom astronomical
sources, S~IOLIICI not also be included in the schrn~c-.
Yet, nevertheless,
the alignrnrnls ;ire at the very least thought-provoking. being most
suggestivr o f ;I sc.rirs of cosmic chords.
Experiments such as those with Chladni plates or with Hans
Jenny's tonoscopc leave us in no doubt as to the potential which
sound vibrations possess to take undifferentiatcd substances and
instantly organize thrrri into regular forms. From there it only
requires one step of the imagination to understand how vibrations of
a much lower frequency (such as the seven million miles long
electromagnetic waves mentioned above) or of a much higher fre-

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

241

(such as cosmic rays and beyond) could crcate - and sustain

Ilr present moment - atoms and worlds.
( )nc or more kinds of wave-forms, travelling heiwc.cn thr planets,
111111 also account for many astrological effects. In fhct, the planets
I I I . I ~ intcract much more continuously and intimatcly 111;inis usually
-.~l.q~rcted.
A report by Gerald Atkinson in thr 7',iin\crt fion.~[!c the
-I rnrrican Geophysical Union (December 1 964) stal cd I ~ I ; I Ist;cl ist ic.;~l
I vlilrnce had indicated a relationship between mnpnctic- ;tcmlivit
y on
I I I I) and the positions not only of the moon, hut ;11>c, (11' M carcury
11111 Venus. But, what was more, the study found tl1;11 intc-rpl.~nrt;ir.y
w.1vrs may have been the cause; specifically, the anion 01. sllock ;incl
Inlw waves in the supersonically streaming plasma coniinb: 0111 fro111
I Icr wn. It is therefore only possible, though, for this p;~rricwl;~r
inlrrI l l . ~ ~ ~ r teffect
a r y to be exerted from a more inward-c.~rl>it
inl: rl;tllc.t
I I ~ I I I I Ione further out from the sun. Thus, while Mercury ;~ntlVrn~l.;
rIirc.t our own geomagnetic field, we might at least 11.1vc. III(.
~i~.;f'action
of knowing that our planet likewise disrupts wl~.ttrvc.l;
1 . 1 i l i o reception there may be on Mars! In fact, Atkinson clitl lint1
I 11.11 the position of the earth influenced the frequency of the s~rrf:~c.r
I ~ ~ a ~ tknown
~ r c s as Martian blue clearings.
'I'hat high frequency waves from space could significantly affrct
~ll~tlitions
on earth would tend to be indicated by experiments into
~ t l rcffects of known vibrations produced in the laboratory. For
~ ~ . t t n p lite , has been found that music is capable under laboratory
c llltlitions of. changing the chemical structure and the strength of
I v.;~als.This effect is particularly marked when ultrasonic music is
110.r~l
in the presence of heat.79 And since we have suggested that
w.~vc-frequenciesfrom the heavens cquate with the ancient science
1 1 1 .tstrology,
this confronts us with the distinct possibility that
.~.~lrological
conditions themselves 111i~hteven be able t o influence
~llr-;~.c~~r;tble
physical and chemical processes.
Aln;r/.ingly enough, this does sccm to be the case. W e havc
,111 l - . l l l y briefly reviewed some of' 111c effects of the heavenly bodics
. I I I I I 1 1 1 1 . i ~ positions upon organic l i i ~ and
,
upon the atmospherc of
I 1 1 1 t..tl.ilr.
The sunspot cycle and other conditions have l1r.c.n
'$1 . I I t V l lI, ;iIly linked with the occurrence of earthquake ancl ot III-I
~ , I I , . I I ~ I IAnd,
I I ~ IinI ~view
.
of thr cffect of music on crystals, tllc- IIIO*,I
I I ~ I ~ . I ~ * ~ I Idiscovery
I I ~ ;
of all is that in crystal growth. t l j ~l l ~ y ~ ~ l t . l l
~.l~.l~
01l r 111c
~,
crystals have been found to be slightly inllllr~lcrtl
I * a l ~ i l i l ) j ; 10 t11c positions of the zodiac and thr I l l . ~ ~ ~ r'1'111%~
'~.a
I I*.,w c v y c.rc;ires quite a link between astrological inl1111+11t.I 1 ~ I 1IIC
I I I I . , I 111:11 lhcy may be based on vibration. ( I t :tls~)tl~t.rlw'~
1 1 1 1 0 i11111l)l
I~IIVIICY
I

c 1

S.

1
1

74.2

rllc entire concept of the perfect scientific experiment, with its

controls and laboratory conditions. Should the finding come to be
independently replicated. we will then have to live with the
knowledge that the ever-changing influences of astrology cannot be
excluded from the tat-tube!)

INFRASONICS, ULTRASONICS A N D ACOUSTIC

ODDITIES
Acoustic oddities and phenomena rrlated t o sound-vibrations
beyond the range of human hearing arc reported from time to time
in scientific journals and newspapers ;IS though they were strange,
misbegotten misfits of the aural world. Rut it becomes increasingly
apparent that many 'strange' acoustic plicnomcna may not be quite
so 'strange' or 'odd' at all. Tlicy m;cy simply constitute those rare
instances when the vast universr of' ;rctrustics which exists beyond
our own range of hearing a t timrs o v c r l ; ~ ~and
s enters into our
perceptible range.
It may be that the intcrplanri:try ~ ~ I Iitsclf
K
is sometimes audible
t o the listener upon earth. ; ~ n dwi;llrllll .111y nred of a music synthesizer ...
We have seen that astronnmic;~1/;1s11-1 l l r ll:ir.;tl rvcllts do influence
earth's magnetic field. What is nlorr, 111i\ I 11.1tl i n I urn has much to
do with the production of thc Ne~rtl~c.rl~
I.i):ltts, the auroral
phenomenon visible from Norway. C : I ~1.1,
; I I.I IICI other northern
lands. And numerous reports attest th:~ttlu. . I \ I ~ ~ ) I . ;;I ~times
t
appears
along with an audible sound. Since the :iun)r;t i.; ~.c.l;t~ed
to the supersonically streaming plasma from the sun, i t I I I . I ~ 111cn be that the
aurora is occasionally able t o render thew ~ 1 1 . 1 1 - vil~rationsat an
acoustic frequency suitable for the human car.
One of the most thorough investigations i111o111caurora sound
was undertaken by the dedicated researcher oi r llc I I ~rthern
~
spectacle,
Sophus Trumholt, and was reported in thc NIIII~W
OS 24 September,
188j. Earlier that year he sent out about a tlir111\;111d
questionnaires
to all parts of Norway, asking if the recipicnr\ Il.td ever heard the
aurora sotlnd, anci if so, what did it sound likc? Of the 144 replies
he received, 92 (04 per cent) believed in the sound - S 3 (or 36 per
cent) because thry hacl personally heard it, and the others because
they knew people who hacl heard it. Of the scores of descriptions of
the aurora-sound which Trumholt received, we can list a sampling:
Quiet whizzing. hissing ;
Soft crackling, sizzling;

243

THE PHYSICS OF THE (-)M

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

,\ k i r ~ t of
l sound as when you tear silk ;

I { I I ~ ~ I ,, I S from a stream;
I I.~l>l>i~~g,
as a flag before the wind ;

, ~ ~ t ~ hissing,
i n g , as from flames:
I(o,tring, as from a storm;
\,VIlispcring and glistering.

w l , tllings
are noticeable from tllrsr cIc.;c.~.i~~lio~~*..
1;iry.l. 111(-ir
~ ~ ~ t . ~ ~
1111ll.1ri1y
with each other, which suggrxts [II:II 1111.I ~ l t r ~ r ~ o is
,l,,r.tr ivc, and not a figment of thc i m ; ~ s i n ; ~ ~.i\ (o- t~. o~n t.l , I )I(.
. I ~ l t ~ ~ l of
, ~ rthese
i t y descriptions with thc kincl OI ~ I I I I I I111.11
~ ~ 11.s111la
~ V I I ( . I I c!learomagnetic waves in spacc are pickrtl 1111 . I I I ~ I ~ I I I I V I . I I ( . C ~
I I I I~ I ~ o u n dthrough a synthesizer ! Perhaps in sc )rnr ,,I I..II\!:I+
W , Iy I 111.
I I I I ~ I ~ : L makes it possible t o hear the eternal whispc.rin!: . I I I ~I .~O . I I I I I ) :
( I 5 1 3 ; ~ ~It. is not at all impossible for ele~troma~ncti5111
~ 1 1 1 r r - 1 Iuw I I 1
t rrli~cnaturally converted into audible air vibration.;. I ;c rr. , I III~III.,
.I ~ttlmberof reported sighting5 of meteors and mctcorirc.s .t1.1.
1111
I
crrd where the observer first had his attention dl.;iwll t o 1111.
a,l~c.ctacle
by a rushing or roaring sound from the burning Ilcrtly. Yt.1
~~tr-tcors
are usually seen at such a great distance that it w o ~ ~ l111.
(l
~r~!~ossible
for ordinary sound-waves to arrive at the ol)sc.~.vr.r'.~
I~,\itionat the same time as the visible light .. unless the ol>.;crvc.l.
wc.rr. hearing electromagnetic waves which had somehow I,rrl~
I l.;~nslated
into air vibrations in his locality.
A lengthy scientific paper by Charles R. Wilson in the Jorrrnnl o/'
(,'ropbysical Research of April 1969 provides support for the ide:~
III;IL the aurora is related to frecjurncics of sound which man cannot
t ~ c ~ r n ~ ahear.
l l ~ Recording and ;in;llysing infrasonic waves at
(:allege, Alaska, Wilson found their structure to be related to the
I imc and space distribution of the s~ipersonic
auroral motions during
I ~ ~ lmagnetic
;~r
substorms. Kitpid :iuror;ll motions accompany thc
I)~~c;tk-ii~
phase of magnetic s ~ ~ h s t o r nand
~ s , it was then that t l ~ r
.
were observcil r o occur. Wilson was able to vcril'y
i~~I.r;~.;onic
waves
~uroralellectrojets gencr;ttc. the infrasonic shock waves."" 'l'l~r
I , then, seems to be ;tssociated with acoustic frcquc.ncit*\
In, I,clow :m d above thr r;lllgc of the human ear.
I
.- by ultrvsonic and infrasonic wavrs, ~lO1lll.I 11
/ \ PI;IIIC':
111c.ni!?(.ingrclated to thc cyclrs of the sun and the plnnr.~.;. . .
'I'hc occasional translation into audibility nf ; I C O I I ~ ; I I ( 1 1 1 r l
vil)r:~tor~
evcnts normally beyond the range of hti111;11l
l1v.11III!! I I I . I Y
.tI.;o hc rcsponsiblc for the large number of nr11c.r .,I I .III!:I.
IIIII~I*,J I I
1 1 t ( - air which are reported from time to tin11.. \ I I I I I rt.lll,lfb,,111.

11-t

1.t

..l

o ~ ~

' 1.1

T H E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

~!:~ll#rt.il y c ~by most scientists, yet they have been faithfully

tl~llrc,tcd and published for a number of years by writers and
~ I J I I I . I I : I ~specializing
S
in strange
- phenomena. The t w o most common
Iorms of strange aerial sounds are those known as 'barisal "
rmns' and
t l ~ c'Big ~ u m ' y ~ latter
h c of these is a low-pitched, intermittent hum
reported by people from many parts of the world. Writing in Fate,
Lucille C. Hieber has offered her o w n description of the H u m :
For about a year and a half I have been hearing a humming of
this same nature. While there is a low humming sound connected
with it, there also seems to be a more pronounced overtone in the
middle range. It is continuous now, and sometimes loud and
sometimes faint, but always there.
.. . the hum does not seem to be so much something heard as
something felt, possibly a form of radar; for one woman stated
she hears it even when she closes her c;irs.""'

245

THE PHYSICS OF THE OM

I I I r y people some minutes beforc the physic;~Io11sct of carthIll.lIrt.s.)Rcsearcher R. W. B. S t c ~ h c n siurthcr s t : C.;

~ ~I 11:it:

I,
n

I111crnaldamage may occur due t o the i;~cttI1:tt 1il11.1son1cw.~vcs

1 \ i l y penetrate deeply and may inducc rcsnn:tnL c.1It.r
on r)l.g;clls
. . . Accidents, absenteeism, and othcr factor5 ~ n t l i iin:!;~ ~rlr4qr..~cl.~I l r )n of human performance can be corrcl:~~ctl
W i t 11 i l l 1 I .~\orltc
cv,~vc\arriving from storms 200 miles a w;iy " l 1

1.

11 statements expand our conceptin11 of just ~ I I , I I

' n ~ ~ l

)111111

I ' ~ . .11it1

rlle effects of even inaudible vibrations ,111 , i t l t l 1 1 1 , I i 1 '1'111..

I I I I I I ~ ! us
~ to t w o implications. Firstly, that natur;il w:~vt..11 rr~rrtiY I I L 11
1.- I llose that might originate from beyond thc c;~rthc.1 t ~ l l t l i IICI(.I*LI
~ l rt ~us.
. ~These waves would relate at least p r t i a l l y to 111c ; i r l t I(.III
P I N r.ption of the O M , the seven Tones, and astralo.qy.
v,
. . St.c-o~~tll
1 1 1 1 I'
we are apparently so ignorant as yet about thc Ion!:- I c.l.111
1 I 1 . c r s on human beings of inaudible man-made wavc-forms, sh0~11~1
IT,,.
rc;illy use them so lightly and frequently, without a g r c ; ~ tclc.~l
Ill#tl.r.
research being undertaken first? As the reader rc:~cls ~ l l i . ;
4 jllt.ncc,
he is being bombarded by hundreds of different 11.c~ll~l.t~c~ics
of radio, and perhaps even radar, waves. Though wc
I I \ I I O ~ hear them, does this really mean that they cannot affect us?
' 1 ' 1 1 ~ ancient philosophers had only the live perforrnanccs of'
trjllng music to contend with. M a k e of it what we will, btlt thc
lv;il,ility is there that wrong music, travclling through the air by
Illr..tlls of inaudible vibrations, may be a5 dangerous as audiblt
I P I I I I I ~ : music. Several modem esotcric authorities have stated just
1 1 1 1 . . 1 0 he so: that the penetration of ihc planet and its people by thr
I I + 1 1 1 , w:ives themselves from hundred of radio stations broadcasting
,I~..~r~l.tl;int
music is at least RS dcstructivc in the long run as thc
I I I I - . I I ~ ~(11- ordinary sound-wavcs.
) I i ourse, it is unnecessary t o ;~cldthat as level-headed citizens or'
~-r~l,!:l~tened
modern era wc rnust discount such wild ideas. A l l ~ i
111
nCllh them, therefore, w r h ; ~ dbetter also discount the c.nlrc.1 I
rill 111.~
t r,llclucted by A. H . Frcy. as reported by Mary anti T)I 1 l l . l l i l
11.11

1 1

I I

~l' l

The possibility that the Big Hum n~ighr be purely physiological

and internal seems discoi~ritctl C
1%
that it is heard by
many people togcthcr, :ind wit11
c. sp;~cc-timelocalizations,
i l ~ ~ sin about it to
when for a period of weeks o r I I ) I ~t t ,~ l l ~~ l~> l . ~ pour
101. instance, was in
the local authorities. O n e famous 'o~ltl~l~c:rk',
England in 1960, when the majority r ) l rrpcms came from East
Kent. At that time the phenomenon W;(.; ~:tkvnvrry scriously: it was
discussed in Parliament and in military (-,il.c,lc.i.'l'hc Ministries of
Science, Supply and Aviation, the Grnt.r:ll I'os~ Office and the
Electricity Board all disclaimed responsihilir v.
Somc havc thought the Big H u m t n Ix 111t. r~llissionof secret
radar bases, but it seems more likely to br rt.l:lrt.~lI O geophysical o r
other factors to d o with vibrations norrn;~lly I~cyondthe audible
range. ( O r somebody somewhere doing a loll~t()M i !)
The picture we are arriving at is one of ;l world permeated with
sounds and wavcs of all kinds of different frrtl~l[.ncics,and which at
times are linked to extra-terrestrial factors. [[I ;In early chapter we
looked at the various very potent ways in which audible sound
affects man's mind, body and emotions - and not all of these effects
depended upun the sound needing to be consciously hcard. What,
then, of the effects upon man of infrasonics and ultrasonics. not t o
mention electromagnetics?
T o take infrasonic wavcs, for instance, these have been found to
cause d i s ~ ~ u i l i b r i u mdisorientation,
,
blurring of vision, nausea and
lassitude. (Identical symptoms to those which have sometimes been

(01

1111

I~I!:

v 1 l l l l l ~ ~

l l(. IOIIII(I L I I ; I ~ some human subjects exposed to I > ~ ; I I ~ I1 '1 ~1 l i l t h i

r;ltl;cr sets perceived sensations o f sn~lnrl L I v . . ~ I 11 I . l h .
1"
tl11.r7in!:, clicking, hissing, or knocking, dcpr.~lrl;l~!!
1 1 1 1 I 11,.
I t . ~ r ~
. . I I I I I IC~l ~I .; ~ r ; ~ t . t ~ r i s tCarc
i c s . w ; ~ s takrn I O t n u t 1 1 1 l l l - I I ~ I - ~ . . I I I I V
11.1

I(,

THE PHYSICS OF T H E OM

' M E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I I., I I I I C , I ~ I O I I
(by loose tooth fillings and the like) of the pulsc111ocli11,tted
signal. A peak of electromagnetic powcr density of as
IOW '45 400 microwatts per square centimetre at the observer
W e shall not discuss here the
could be perceived '1s sound
possible mechanisms for electrophonic hearing, but perhaps the
electromagneticwaves act direc~lyon the brain [my italic^].'^^

...

Would not such signals also act upon the brains of those who could
not hear them? Perhaps it is time for the invention of a portable
anti-radio-wave body shield. But in the meantime we are going to
have t o live with thirty o r forty simultaneous transmissions of pop
and punk coursing through our blood, bones and brain. Which
brings us directly back t o the subject of music and its power .

..

247

r l I . ~ I I Icmtury.
I
W h o can say what scientific dicr.ovcrics are yet
grl~l~,?
I \ I I I ~ I ( - 1I1 1t1;~nneeds t o treat music with a grcatcr rc.sprct. Mlisic is
#I I r l l ~ I I .:incl vibration is the energy of thc Suprr.nic-. 1,ikc liuclc~r
which can be used t o destroy an rntirc city, 01. to ('11111isI1;l11
, ~ ; y requirements of that same city, musir I O O is ;L 11n1tt;tl
.lnd its ultimate effects, for good o r cvil, 111,ly 1101 IIC ;l1 .l11
- 1 1 s . ~ ~ ~in
~ their
I I ; ~potency
r
t o those of nuclenr c.ncr!:y. O n l y m;ln can
. I ' I,!V IIOW music is t o be used; and thus, pcrlinp.;, tlr.i.~tl(. ;II,II wll;lr
1 1 1 - I rwll ~ ; I C Cis t o be. As w e treat the energy of t11r . I I O I ~ I . will1 ~:I.~.;II
114. -tnd caution, so too d o w e need to handlc ni,~sic.111 ~ l i c - l i 1 1 ; t l
is. we should strive t o realize more fully, it .;(.t9~ns,
tl1.11 w l i ~ r ~
;tl with sound we are dealing not merely with 111(. c.r~c.l.~:ic.~
of
r, nor only with the art of mortal minds, but wit11 ( ; o t I .
4,111'

CONCLUSON
W e have seen that wave-forms, whcther nudiblc o r otherwise, are a
far more important phmomr.nnn than is usually recognized. The
information w e have lookcd at ;llso strol~glysi~ggcststhc objective
reality of the OM, its link with astrology. ; I I I ~its actual ability to
affect matter o n earth. All this 11;~s( ' I I O I . I I I O ~ I ~implications for the
r Oh1 is that
musician and music-lover. This vcry 5;irnc. ~ ~ o w ocf~the
which was said to be contained within ,111 . 1 1 1 c l i l 7 l c ' solind. Chladni
the power of
plates and tonoscopes demonstrate n l o s t ,t:r;~~~liic:~lly
music to organize and re-organizc suhs~;~ncc.\
.~it,ordingt o the tones
produced. All this leaves us not vcry 1-ts A I ;III from thc idea that
some music is objectizrely good and somc n~usir-ohj~rtivelybad or evil.
(Once. passing by a crowded dance hall wl~c.l.c.rock was being
played, I could not help perceiving the floor I 11 thr I1;t11 in terms of a
world like the
Chladni plate, and the danccrs appeared f1)1.. l 1 1
j u m p i v , hclplcssly manipulated grains of s:~ntl.)
Consiciering that Western man only emrrl:cll ;I k w decades ago
frclm thr. ninctcenth-century style 'little p r ; ~ n ~ ~ l oc rs ' 'tiny coiled
springs' thcorics of the atom, the fact t h ; ~ tr l ~ rearliest rccorded
civilizations wcrc already aware of the in.;uhstantial, vibratory
nature of mattcr can only leave us awe-struck. Whence came this
knowledge? Whcrc., ;tnd how long ago did it first arise?
Whatever thc ;InSWer, that the ancicnts possessed such
knowledge makes clnr thing clear: that it would be most unwise for
us t o dismiss other aspccts of the ancient wisdom such as those
appertaining to the inncr powcr of music. It might be said that our
current understanding of the real nature and ability of sound is as
yet in the same kindergarten stage as was the physics of the
1 1 1 ( 8

sotcl counselled me and charged me to listen fir r1nicc.c ~ l ~ , rirr

rt
neitherf r m the tongue nor the throat.
/{+re that day I heard but dully, and nought save clnnrour ' i v d lorlrl
cries came t o my ears;
l l r r ~nou I have learned to lzsten to silence,
' I 'o hear its choirs singzng the song gages,
(,'hantingthe hymns of space, and disclosing the secrets of etemi!~.
- Kahlil Gibran

/\I

Notes
'11 was the particular hallmark of thc god, M a r d ~ k ' s , ~ o w that
e r hc
~ ) u l dcausc objects t o vanish and to be crcated by his words. This
other gods asked him t o clcrnonstrate as they spread out a
!;:krmcnt in front of him. Thcn, 'As Mnrdnk uttered the word, the
g;rrrnent disappeared; and ag;~illhc spoke, and, behold, the garment
w ; ~ there.'
s
I

I X I W C ~the

MYSTERY OF PYTHAGORAS' COMMA

Appendix to
6.
The Mystery of Pythagoras' Comma

Ill,wcver, given these twelve notes, if a rhirrcc,r~~l~

I I O I C w,15
in order to complete the octave with n sc.1ic.~~
I 11 I wc.lvc.
1 1 1 1 u . 1 "ills of a fifth, it was found that the octave coulrl no/ /'I. ~o/,.l/ly
l~ll~/llr/rd!
This is a universal law of the physics of ronrb . ~ n di~lclrr'cl,
,
~ r ~ ; ~ [ h c m a t iac scycle
:
of twelve fifths complctcs stvcn oc~;~vt..;
e mystical numbers: twelve and seven) plus ;I little ~iiorc-.
cd mathematically: ( 3 :2)12 > ( 2 : 1 ) 7 by ;I sliglir rxt:c,\
This interval, since Pythagoras was one who notcrl i t , 11:1\
known as Pythagoras' comma. The differencc is n r;~rio( I S
[) :8 1, the extra 1 being the comma.
comma produces huge cosmological, as well as practic;~l,
~ ~ l ~ l l ~ ~ t , ;and
~ t i oresults.
ns
Since this system of calculating twclvc:
11 I.--cloes not perfectly complete the octave, the specific twelvc
ral1111c~cit produces are imperfect for use together in harmony. Thcy
I I I 11 Ixrfectly harmonize since they d o not divide the octave into
I I r I ly accurate divisions of twelve as, say, the hours of a clock d o
1fr.l l l y
divide a clock face. Yet to adjust their slight pitchI d * I r~lvtncies in order t o produce perfect harmony would rendcr
11 I I O I ~ imperfect as an interval of a fifth, or as a ratio of 3 :2. Thc
I if., 1i11g
of their musical system was p;iraniount to the ancients, for
I I LI I ~ 111usic
had to harmonize with thc ercrnal laws of the universe.
1 1 1 4 1 1 IIII.(*
the perfect ratio of 3 :2;ind its interval of a perfect fifth
I
I 1-!:;1rded as sacred and inviol:thlc. If the system resulted, as it
1 9 , I. 1 1 1 I 1 1 ~ . harmony of moreal music hcing imperfect, then this hall
1
61 I I C as a manifest symbol oI' man's fall from grace, and of tllc.
1
~~riperfection
of thc nnn-licavenly realm of time and sp:tt,r.
I
~lrrliapsthe ancients wcse correct in this, for the commit is . I
1 1 1111:l- . 1 1 1 t 1 widc-ranging phcnomcnon, being literally 'writttrl i 1 1 1 ( 1 '
I 1 1 8 ~ ~ I I ~ . ,.{I
I I :lncl mathematical laws of the universe. We art. r111
~.I.~II,I:
I , a I I I I I O I i.!!io~ls of thought difficult for the Western rnintll ro ,:I . I ~ , I , .
1 , 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 . I ~ ~ i \ c i l ) i lyi r sccms to bc that it is by the p l l r . n ~ ~ ~ t O~
I rr~~l~~
I. , I I I . ~ ~ : I , I . . I ~ , ' I ol11111;r th;tt the very nature of our 1ivr.s W I I ~ I I II II I V
1 1 1 1 1 I ~ ~l~r,l.l.~lily
I
is ;rrrnngcd.
II.IIII)LC~,

11

One of the greatest of the mysteries of the science of sound is the

strange phenomenon known as Pythagoras' comma, which since
time immemorial has been to man a symbol of his fallen state of
imperfection.
Given that different pitches of tonc arrange themselves into
octaves (which have the ratio of 2 : l ) , Inan from the earliest times
needed to find a method whcrcby thc noics within each ocrave could
be calculated. This coulcl 1~ done, ir was discovered, by using the
next most fundamcl11i l l , 1 1 1 ~ 1I I ; I I ~ I I I ~ I I ~ O U S tonal ratio, that of 3 :2, o r
L purc fifth. If one pictures the octave
the interval k
~f a fifth represents a seven-twelfths
as a circle, t
! o'clock, moving clockwise, to 7
circuit of r l ~
o'clock. Thib I;I\~(.:,0 1 1 ~I I I C C I ~ . By continuing around clockwise
again, anc)rllc.r ~>itcllis produced, but not at 2 o'clock on the same
circlc, li)r 1111. 'c,irclc' is actually not a circle at all, but a section of a
spir:tl W I I L I I .;l)i~.;tlsupward into higher octaves. By going around
clockwiui. i l l , I ,,c.l,ic*sof perfect fifths, a series of twelve notes can be
pro~luc~c.tl,I t . l . 1 1 (.cl hy the vibratory ratios of the series 1, 3 :2,
( 3 : z ) ~:1,1111 . . I ) 0 1 1 1 0 ( 3 : 2 ) l l . T r y this out for yourself: by advancing twr'lvc' l i
nd a clock face in jumps of seven hours at a
tlme, you W I
I back at 1 2 o'clock, having landed once on
each hour.
Howevrr, rh(-.c I wc.lvc notes could not practically be used as the
scale of a systrnl 01 11111sic,
sincc they extend over several octaves
with wide g : ~ p s in I)c.twcen each note. Therefore the ancient
philosopher-musici;r115 tlcviscd schemes whereby intcrvals of a fifth
l c notes within only one octave. For
could be used to c a l c ~ ~ l :I ~welve
instance, the Chincse wcnr rlp in pitch by the ratio of 1 :3, then
~ done. Such a practice was capable of
down by 3 : 1, up by 1 : 3, ; t ~ so
producing twelve approximate notes all within one octave, as shown
in Figure 4.6

249

4 11

111

r I 1 I

111

10

'

l![\

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

'I'I~(,l~t:ll
~ h comma
c
may be a symbol of the imperfection of man's
rrf:~lsticte, the very same comma
provides the way
11.11 Ic r o the original state of perfection. For the comma is not a slight
lesr than seven octaves, but in excess of them. In the ancient
~rl~c~rval
world this fact was widely conceived as a symbol of renewd. The
and finish a cycle o f seven
c.yclc of twelve perfect fifths did not
octaves, but exceeded it, and thus, as it wcre, spiralled upward.
There is cvidencc that this upward spiral of renewal was mystically
associated with the widespread ancient myth of the
the
archetypal 'bird' which is resrlrrcctcd from its o w n ashes.
Pythagora.;' corntna, then, can be Seen as being God's o w n engram
writtcn into the very laws of the universe and of physics. And it is
by thc nature of this engram that man is heir to the promise of
cvcntual resurrection and ascension our of thc dim caverns of mortality.
~ OftC'rl
;
wrestled
~
~
with
~
the
Through the ages civilizatiorls J
riilcrnma o f whether to put up sit11 ilrllx'r~c:ctmusical pitchcs while
retaining pure idealism in thcir sysrc.nl
I'itc]~-calculation,or else t o
ideal by taking the
depart a little from alienrncnt wirll t \ , , . Ilc.:~vrnl~
~ r a c t i c a path
l
of slightly a d j r ~ s t i l lr I~l c . i l Il,,tc.s in order t o harmonize
them. Though there were indi~,iJll:tl li!:lirc*s who dissented, the
ancirnt cultures
optcd, ill ~ll(.iritIc.;~Iisni,for heavenly
alignment at the expense of having sliKI1tIFimlx~rl'cctrelationships
century AD the
betwecn their notes. However, by the sr.v~.ntc.c.l\~li
Wcstcrn world had begun its mLry into t l l ~I,l.c.s(-nt era of science
and logic. This era was marked not only
;ru ;trritude of overn~atcrialism,but also by a most useful p r a g n l . l t i ~ ; ~ ~.I.llis
~.
pragmatism
cntcrcd into the debate on tuning, and
c,,lltlovr.rsy heightened:
should man opt for hcave~ilyperfection
I I I I I \ ~ ( . ; I ~inharmony, o r
for :I dcphtrture from abstract idealism for r l l r . s.~kc.of expanding
music's l i ; l ~ n o n i cpossibilities? ( ~ l on~ tIlr
~ ,wry down-to-earth
level, thc (.on<trl~ction
of instruments such as Itcvl)oards according t o
the Frccct1[\ of' idcalism was proving insupct.;~I)lyproblematic in
somc aspect.;: :I grr:it many more keys were tlc.ccssary in order tv
incorporate the 1ii;111y 'extra' notCS CrCateLl a cycle of perfect
fifths.)
The idea of ~ I ; I I I ' \ ini\'~rfcctState being rcl.\tcd to a tonal rnisalignment with thc Ahovc was widcsprcad in the poetry of thc
seventeenth century Clcn~cntPaman wrote:
1111

Screw thee high My heart: up t o T h r Ang&' key

W h a t if t h y strings all crack and d y e ?
O n such a Ground, Musick 'twill bc to dy.""

MYSTERY OF PYTHAGORAS' COMMA

I

.#

I-Ierbert actually went s o far

l(*c.~
ion with the Crucifixion:

al~!:~n

:,S

10

211

;~ssoci;ttcman's tonal

1t~1111.l

I'llr Cross taught all wood to resound his N;irnr.

W h o bore the same.
I l i \ \tretched Sinews taught all strings, whxt k ~ y
I,. I)c,>tt o celebrate this most high D;ly.
( :clurort both heart and lutc. a n d twist a s o n s
Pleasant and long:
( ) I , \incc all musick is but three parts vied
And multiplied,
( ) Ict Thy blessed Spirit bear a part
AIIJ make up our defects with His sweet Art.'"'

I S. Bach became the first major musician to dcp;~rt f1-(1111 1111.

~tlt.:~lisrn
of tradition, opting for the pragmatic appro;lclr 01 ( . ( l ~ ~ . ~ I
11-lnlwrament,or octaves divided into twelve 'equal' division\.
1,11rlrrd up vast new avenues of harmonic possibility, ; ~ n t lI ~ t l1 1 1 1 .
wily into the towering musical developments of the eightcr*nlh , 1 1 1 t l
~ ~ i n c t c m tcenturies.
h
The intensely religious Bach was ;IS go(ltl #I:+
, 'Well, since we d o find ourselves in this fallen slatr 01
imperfection, we had better be practical about it, harmol~i;ll.
usic, and b y this very process begin composing a new ;11i(.I
1,crtcr art form. An art of enhanced sublimity can in itself lcarl 11s
luck t o the heavens.'
This. in essence, is a summary of man's relationship a n d dealings
with the phenomenon of Pyth;lgot;tl;;' comma. But it is not the end
o f the entire story, for the he;tvcvdy hodics themselves have a final
~ s l to
c add.
'"'7 have noted a number of' lin~csthat the months of the year
associated in antiquity wit11 rhc total twelve notes of thc
)l octave. But there arc. of coursc, two slightly different kinds
111hs: thc solar or ca1cntl.11.
I I I )n1:11
~
which averages 30.44 days,
..
I T I : I ~ ~;I Itotal
I ~ : of 365.2 56 t l . ~ ~pcr
s year, and the synodic I I I ~ ~ I I 11lo11r
11 01' 29.5 306 days. Thr \c,l;tr month is exactly one twclftl~0 1
tlir I I I I I ~ . it takcs for thc r.;trtll to orbit once around thc S I I I ~ .'l'llr
month is thc time which the moon t;lk(.s 1 0 1 1 . 1 ~ . * ~
its phnscs - SAY,from new moon to IIC-wrill 11 111
I.tr month is not exactly the same ;IS ;t ro1.11I I I O ~ I I ~ I1 1.
rc~rn.i~.k.~hly
closr, with the curious rcs11l1 I I I . I I I 111.1 r. .I I
~illl;ttrIyIWCIVC lunar months (yes, that n ~ l ~ ~ i rl wi.1~1.
, r . ~ .I!:.IIII
')
lcncti~rye:lr. Indrcd, sincc solar rnonthr; ol'lr.~.Ir-,-,I I I I V I Ir l l s . - 8 ~ , t : ~ ~ ' 8
ot their coming ;end going than do thclsc o f I 11r I I I O O I I . 1 1 11.1.. I I - ( . ( ~ I I ~ . I I
' 1 ' 1 1 1 5 ~

1.

?
m

ffi

.I

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I'ytli:tgoras' comma is an eternal reminder to us of the ancient

~ll~stical
concept that there exist two fundamental states or freclt~n~cies
of being: the dense and physical state of mortality, and the
s ~ t t cof immortality as attained by Enoch, Jesus Christ, and other
great masters of East and West. And that it is the goal and destiny
of all men t o so purify and perfect themselves that they can be translated from the lower state to the higher. If the W o r d was made
flesh in one man, the Word can be made flesh in all.

Coda :
The Ancient Wisdom Revisited:
The Modern Esoteric Viewpoint
'r )l), please, Master, will you tell us all about t hc Ikc .;i'
ironically naive question if ever therc w;ts (III(.!YCI 111c
c.r smiled benevolently at the chela (disciplc), c ,111 , I IIIIIII(II.OII%
I
111k1r
of the eye betraying his inner reflections.
'Wcll, I cannot tell you all about them,' he c;~rrl;~llv~ ~ c ~ ~ l l i r ~ ~ l .
1 1 1 1 1 11 you have reached a very high Initiation. Will you li;~vc.wl1.11I
1(.11 you, which will be partial and inevitably misleading, t r r w~ll
,,
witit until you can be told the whole thing?"06
/\I)

F$ l

18,r

tt

d.,,,

l111

l 'l I 1': GNOSIS RETURNS

I lw cllcla and his two companions decided that anything woulcl

Ilc.

l.trr;ible to nothing, and so the Master proceeded to talk for sonw

r r l r l l . upon the subject of the seven rays. The chelas, taking notes ;IS
I 1 1 4 - M aster spoke, understood portions of his information but, as hc
11 1 1 1 I'oretold, found much of it incomprehensible. However, the
h i .~-.~c.r's
discourse marked only the beginning of what was to come.
I Ilt-;.r;~fter.stage by stage, an ;~hundantwealth of fascinating data
rc.1.~ clea eased to mankind on thc srlhjrct of the seven major rays or
, Much was to be told ahout tlic individual nature of the ray.;.
1,c.lntionship to each nchrr. ;irld, above all, how they cacl~
I ( - ( - the material, psych~)lo,i:ic;tland spiritual patterns of lil'v
~.11~1h.
I I I C above conversation did not take place in ancirnt l utli.1,
I 1 1 China
~
or Egypt o f thc 1 0 n ~ - ~ a s s egolden
d
ages ~ I rC1 1 1 1 ~ ~ 1 I I I I I I * ~ 'l'llr talk is recordcd by Charles W . Leadbeatrr, wlto w,I*.
1 + c T 8 . ~ .1 1~) ~h;tve
~ . taken
in the late nineteenth century, '1'111. I l ~ r * l . t
1 1 t t .t..lic.tl rhc clucstion was the author, M r C ~ o ~ c r - O ; l k l ( . ~ ,
1111.
P I I = , I (.I w;ls 1)jwal Kul, one of the brotherhood of A C I C ~ ~ I111
. . nrvll .I..
I 1 1 , ( ; I(.;,I W l ~ i t eBrotherhood. The incident t t ~ c ~ lk~ l . ~ cc11 111111.1
. l 1 1 1 I,,!:
1 1 1 ~ . c : ~ r l ydays of the Theosophical Socictv.'""
1 1 1

. r ~ ~ k l

Id

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

CODA

The fact is that the wilder excesses of gross materialism in

science, and in the general outlook of Western man, in many ways
peaked around the late 1800s, and have since been steadily on the
wane. True, present Western civilization can hardly be said to
display the same extent of a mystic;tl outlook as prevailed in antiquity. Yet there is present in the Wcst today what is almost a
hidden force at work; an underground network of individuals who
cannot ever be specifically pinned down, dcfined or counted, since
there is as yet no one organization - no csotcric Solidarnoit - to
which they belong.
Meditation, astrology, human aura siurlics, reincarnation,
acupuncture - one could compile a lenbrlhy list of such subjects
which are now captivating a considerablc intc.rcst in a large minority
of people. The gnosis is returning. Clothrcl in so~iirwhatdifferent
raiment perhaps, and with more of an eniplt;~sisupon scientific documentation, but what is essentially the s;tmc. \ysrc~tiof beliefs as that
of the ancient wisdom is again finding qui~c.;I ~ll~rtihrr
of adherents.
And this time it has more than ever t o t e a l 1 11.~ .tl)out the power of
sound.
Esotericism in the form of myths and rcli!;ic-)us rcxts can be read
and spoken about fairly comfortably by ; I I I - i t is sufficiently
removed in time so as not to disturb us a n ~ lIi)rt.r 11, 1 0think. But
when we find that same esotericism ~onfrontin~:
I I - , , with all of its
claims, face-to-face in our own time, we h;~vt-l l ~ r . 11ie
~ ~ inevitable
~
dividing of the way between the acceptors ancl r I I 5cc.prics.
H o w objective and valid are the tenets of mc1(1t*1.11
c-sorericism? It
would not be possible in this book to debarc I I I ~ . cl~lc.stionat sufficient length as would have worth. I would \ i l l l l ) l y say, on the
personal level, that a number of experiences it1 liit. 11;tvc. taught me,
for one, that no truer statement was ever uttcrrtl 111;cnthat truth is
stranger thafz fiction. At times science fiction x n t l cvcn the most
fanciful of fantasies havc absolutely paled, appcxiil~ginexpressibly
unimaginative, in comparison with some of thc cc.c.t.c.lswhich reality
has elected to offer glimpses of. This being said, i t riltrst be left to the
reader to make up his own mind as we now cliscuss some of the
things which modcrn csotericists have to tell us about the inner
powers of sound.
Since the conversation between Cooper-Oakley, Leadbeater and
Djwal Kul on the roof of the Theosophical Society's headquarters,
the great brotherhood of Atiepts to which Djwal Kul belonged has
given out more information on the seven frequencies of the Word
known as the seven rays. From this information, it is possible to

construct a table to show the main attributes of each of the rays.

Table 4 shows which chakra, colour, God-qualities and perversions
of the God-qualities relate to each ray. Not only music, of course,
but all the activities of life - every thought, word and deed amplify one or more of the seven rays or their perversions. Nevertheless, the use of tone is a major means by which the seven rays or
their perversions become amplified. The column indicating the Godqualities shows which psychological and spiritual qualities are
expanded throughout self and society wherever beautiful and harmonious music is played. Wrong music amplifies within the performer, the audience, and the community at large the various listed
perversions of the rays. From this table there may be gained an
understanding of many of society's present ills, as well as the understanding of how these ills may be dissolved by the promulgation of
correct music such as Eastern and Western classical music. Looking
at the table, I am struck by how immediately and noticeably these
traits appear in people whenever music is played, good or bad.

210

2j7

MUSICIANS REDISCOVER THE INNER WORLDS

As the gnosis has gradually re-emerged in recent decades, composers
have lost no time in incorporating its precepts once more into their
art. O r then again, did they ever fail to do so? From the very
beginnings of the Western classical tradition and throughout its
history, strong elements of mysticism have been incorporated into
numerous musical pieces. As wc noted in an early chapter, many of
the works of J. S. Bach, Kccthoven and other great composers are
deeply mystical. Yet this kind of mysticism is of a general nature.
The spiritual outlook of thcsc. great men, having come naturally to
them. was not for the most I-I;II.I related to any particular esoteric
school. (The obvious exccprio~lI I I rllis hcing Mozart, who to a large
extent based his operas ancl I~isi~~.;rrorncntal
works upon the metaphysical and numerological princil~lcsof Freemasonry.)
From the late 1800s, howrvt.~,.,clid particularly within our n w ~ i
century, the stream of serio~lzco111p~3CI>of music has bccn c ~ ) r l
nected to a background of c~sc~~cricism
to a degree rarely rt..iIi~l,ll
wen by most musicologists. '/'his esoteric backround can hr. \rrbtt rrt
retrospect to have been the /.wirnv fi.zctor behind the comporrr:r ' 4 / J , I I , I>/
style and subject matter.
One might ask, how did there come to be this nlarkr.tl . I + . I 1 1
of recent composers with the esoteric? P e r h ; ~ ~I .l ;l v 1 1 1 1 1 ~ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
finds itself being directed naturally by rnl~sic I ~ I I I I 1 1 1 I L I I I I , ( I
mysticism and metaphysics. O r is it, o n 111t. l l r r I 1 I I I1 , I I 11,
1.r

114

14 111

11

411

1111

i'inf.

Hr.irt

-- -

.--

p-.

:<:F::.

L:,

L,.;;-.-

;... .~
...

Ritual, tran\niutation, ju>ricc,

mercy

I I I V I N E FREEDOhl-

Minirtratinn, ~ r r v i c c .
~ C ~ I ~ P I C < S ~ C <hdrnllc~snrss
\.

DIVINE PEACE.

abundance

SCIENCE:
Truth, healing, divine visinn,

DI\'!NE

<l~,irtt:,.~cc..tit-~ti

(:1.7,.,:?:
.
.

- 2 .

,-F

.- . .- - . . ,-,.--

Oninircictlce. illuriiir! i r '

!indcrst.tndi?<. ? %c-.- . . .-

D I V I N E \,trlSDOhl

FIunian will, al>.;rncc of

D l V l N E \YII,L:
Ornnipotcncc. pcrlci:tio:1.
prurection. faith

<

\~lfi\ht~ci\,

Crete, Grccce

11,

Saint Cicrnl~il;
~ r a n s v l v a n i a .R n m a n i ~ 2nd
.
T ~ t b l chlounrain in
Tcton Range. I t ' y o m ~ n p .

Servitude. rotc, di\orderliness,

d o g m a , inju\ticc, hardness of
heart

lJSA

Nada:
Saudi Arabia

Emotion21 ti~rbulcncr,
h~occntricity.<oct.~lc l i q ~ ~ c s .
gnngs, ww;cr, i'rec ~:Ivc,
disruption of f a ~ n i l y,ind
community life
:*

H ilarion :
absrnce of nlnnifesr
works, lack

5otrtllrrn 1:r;cnc.c

P.~itlrllr \'c.i~'tiicn

I l ' y o c ~ i n g .US24

L*llltr>.
Gr.inJ T r t o n . T c r t ~ nI<angc.

El M o r y a :
Darjceling. India

the Clirist-conbciousnos of
t h r r;iy a t this tirnr; l o c a t i ~ ~ n
of thcir retreats"

C h o h ~ no r Lord f o i u s i ~ i ~

Superstition, rrror. dist.a>e,

C I \ ~ ; I y- , I ~

hurran .)
n p a r h y . \~-1liu,4li1>.

H.,l,.*r11s.:~.

F! --.:Y !,,.!,:.
- . F : I ~ A :l,)y;c,
I
. . ..~-.r
,. :C I , <
- ---,. . -?<..<.-. , ,,~r,.~,,.
- . .. . .
.

!n*-c~x:~<i,~n.
,int~bc

L .

cncrcv. rrnpcrkction. qt.rtr o f

Pcrvcrqivtib uf the Godqualiticb of thc r.cv

(;od-clu;~ltt~c\of clir r;iy

Table 4 : The Jeven Rays

.. n in C l ~ w bthe H<qhr.ct oun~nitrBook 1 l"'

lrr offices of r h r wvcn Ctloh.:n\ 01 rhe rn)? *re pn\lrii,n\ In thc hierarchy of the (;rent \ % i t ~ R ~ ~ ~ t h e r h owhich
n d h,~\.<crrhrrJ srnis: r l n c
n.,mcc i,f conlr ci the grcaf souls whvsc ~ttainmrnth;is qual~frrdthem to rlrhody rtlrtr pwitions ~t [hi\ tltilc drc .n.clLknw.n
>:ud:nti i1f:hc
- --r~.hT\ ~ l the
f scvcn Chohnns art. ldrgclr focutcd un the crhcr;' planc of hcing, but thcy al\o includc concc'~lcdFhy\'cai .~sfccrs I r I \ the rc>plln:?"-ne r l i thr Choh;~nsro ovcrsrr anli direcr thc acritrities occurrtng on cach rxy at aU levds of hcinp t h r ~ u ~ h r ~
thc
u !r!atlct.[ry hr~dy
~c

#g\

Seat of the soul V i o l 5

Pwplc aijd
Gold

.9(11:u. plcxus

Grccn

Third c y r

Ycllow

Crown

Blue

Throat

Corresptrnding
colour

Chakr.t o r
ccutre which
sustains rhc
trrqucncy of
rhc ray in
the Anammv
oi nl.tn

nu.

Kay

?(I()

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

loystical mind turns naturally t o the art of music? Whatever the

,inswer, there is no doubt that music and mysticism g o together like
the proverbial horse and carriage. Each of the t w o fields of
endeavour illumine and add to one's striving and attainments with
the other. The sage of old would have said that the t w o are so
closely connected because mysticism Is music, and music i~
mysticism.
The conscious use of esoteric principles in music can be traced
back even to the period before and during the Middle Ages when
the original ancient wisdom t c a c l ~ i n ~disappeared
s
from public view.
Peter Hamel states: 'A tradition of musical esotericism, manifesting
through Rosicrucian and other c:~hlalistic, Pythagorean and
alchemistic groups, runs right t11rr)ugh the Middle Ages and up to
our own times."O
The modern phase of musical csnt~ric.is
,en one of mixed
blessings, however. Though many ni.tjol.
:rs have worked
from an esoteric background, f ) y n o Illr.
' them were the
purified chalices into which thc prrSrc,~ I.qqos could be poured,
as demanded of all musicians hy tht. :trrc.ic.n~philosophers. Some; ~ tother times
times their motives and characters wcrc. in~pt~rc.;
the esoteric teachings which t h y t:lppc~l wt3~v3
I hcl~~sclves
faulty, or
else were imperfectly understood. Alcx:~nclc.rSc~i;tl)in( l 872-1 9 1 5 ) ,
after early years as an admirer and folloir~c.ro I 1 1 1 t . WOI-ks
of Chopin,
elected t o delve so deeply into metaphysic;~l~n~~\ik.,tl
bystems that, in
the view of many commentators, his actu:bl 1n11sicIrccame as much
hindered as helped. Scriabin's aim was to ~r;t11~1:1tr
'the essence of
soul and spirit1 into musical notation, to which r-rtcl he utilized a
complex thcoretical background of T h e o s ~ ~ .l ~l n~d~colour-tone
correspondences. However, the end result is wthll clc.scribed by his
follower, Sayaneyev, as 'the ecstasy of hypcr-;I(.\I11c.1ic emotions, of
nameless nightmares, of love and suffering'. T h r r l~i~~f'characteristics
of his style were often those of morbidity and sc)rr~)w;
and whether
these are truly 'the essence of soul and spirit' is opt.11t o question. In
England at around the same time, several Irssc~composers also
based their style upon a system of what they I>clicved t o be the
accurate correspondences between musical notes and visual colours.
The resultant music w;~snot, however, highly memorable.
Some of the morc successful esot ericall y-inclined composers were
briefly discussed in Cha pter 2: Ilebussy and his leadership of the
.
Sion, as well as his fascination
weird secret group. the n-.
r n o r y of
with the occult works of Edgar Allen Poe; hlaurice Ravel, who was
intrigued by many aspects of occultism. Another prominent figure,

CODA

26 1

I . I ; ~Sittie, was a member of the Frcnch Rosicrucian Order. Arnold

llornberg delved deeply into the Old Testament and into the
..,,~l.ilist
teachings of Swedenborg. W h a t influcncc this had upon his
bIl*vc.lopmentof the revolutionary technique of scrialism w e can only
c tl~~jecture,
but it must have been considerablr. Tt is an alnlost
l ~ ~ ~ i v c rfeature
sal
of students of the esoteric, and understandably so,
I ~ I . I I their studies assume prime importance over almost anything clse
111 tl~cirlife, and certainly in their inner life of intuition and intellect.
('I'lrc standard kind of biography which is written about composers,
.I<.well as othcr great figures such as politicians, writers and scicnII*,IS,
continually neglects to note this vital factor. Whenever the
I t*c.ord shows that a musician studied esoteric matters (and someI IIIICS when the record does not show it!) we can in fact be sure that
studies were of at least equal importance t o him as his music.
I II('SC
/ \ I I ~t herefore esotericism will have lent itself greatly t o the shaping
01 his personality and his artistic style.)
rollowing in the footsteps of Schoenberg, the other serialists
wcbre also esotericists. Webern studied, among other things, cab11;~listicnumerology. Josef Hauer (1 88 3-19 59) was a Rosicrucian
ilriliate who saw each note of the scale as havi.ng its own particular
-q)iritual effect, and thus devised his note-series in order to group
I l~cseeffects into particular sequences. Other well-known musicians
I1;tve also reflected various esoteric doctrines or aspects of occultism
i l l thr:ir works, among these being Olivier Messiaen ;ind C;irl Orff,
l
.tnd even, in certain pieces, Sergei Prokofirv i ~ r ~ c P;tul
~
~..i l n a e m i t h . ' ~As for the contemporary ;Iv;tnr j:;irtl(+, I I I ~ . draw
I I o r rhcir works.
111orethan ever upon esotericism 3s tllc f;
I I I O I I ~ ~their own particulnr hritncl 01'
~ I I I ' 11;~slittle in
c)lllrl,on with the genuine ;trric.lc. *1'11(. 0 1 1
rp1111 Cage is very
1,trj;cly oriented around his ~IV;II-%C*II
~ ~ l ~ i l o ~(cvolved
o ~ ~ l ~ after
i~s
.ling the lectures of thr Zcmn M:I\I1.1. I ). T. Suzuki, for several
Ils during the 1940s). l'111. nlohl rcccnt major work by
I\ . I ll~rinzStockhausen, entitlccl .\/ri~iu,w;is released in an LP format
( w i t 11 .i tmver very much 01' 111~.I l< music style) accompanied by
~ I ; I , I ; V ;lItcr page of metaphysic.;tl !:il>l)i.rish written by the composer,
,tttc.\ti~~!:10 how his latest prr,dr~ction reflects the Music of the
Sl)llr*rrs;IIIJ
the sacred tones rclcased by the astronomical body of
I
tillc.
'l'hcsc 1lI;iny distortions of the genuine principles of esotercism arc
111o\i 11111;)rti11l;~te
for, as Mozart, Beethoven and others have
11~.11ionrlr;itccl,
nlctaphysics and mysticism are capable of providing a
11c.111cndor1s
fount of creativity. But this is true only for those who
l-

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are humbly willing to adjust and shape themselves into conformity to

the esotericprtnciples. The opposite results when there is an absence of
humility and listening grace: the result being that the composer
seeks to shape and adapt the timeless truths of the Spirit to his own will.
In the purer of these two paths Gustav Holst, for one, possessed the
humility to succeed excellently. His deep studies of astrology
resulted in his popular and timeless The Planets Suite, while his
knowledge of Sanskrit and of Christian Gnosticism likewise resulted
in highly original and accomplished spiritu;il works.
In the United States a quite uniquc composer, Norman Thomas
Miller, has brought forth several tone pc)cnis which truly deserve to
be called New Age music. Working froni A background of the
teachings of the Great White Hrothrrhood. N. T . Miller has
evolved a style which, while in many w;iys I~cingentirely novel, also
seeks to return the tonal arts t o ihr 11,.1ditionalprinciples of
aesthetics. His music deliberntcly ;~voicl.; rllc trap of overintellectualism, and can be undc.rsrootl ;I lid enjoyed by any
spiritually-minded person. lt is ron:ll caxi.rpl where dramatic
development specifically requircs ;I ilclil~r~~~;~rc
tli,c.orci. N. T. Miller's
most important work to date is 'l'kr r ; r ~ l lr,( C r r n ~ l o t , 'a~thirty
~
.;llirit~~;~lity.
Miller is
minute tone poem of unique and sc~rsclli~~~:
actually an accomplished multi-niedi:~ :1r.t15t. I)c*ir~gnot only a
musician, but also a painter, poet, p h n t ~ ~ } : r ; ~ ~;tnd
r l ~art
t . ~ ~director.
Yet in The Call of Camelot he seems somrhow t l r 11.1vrcombined all
of these talents into the medium of music, ior rllcrc- c o ~ l l c ihardly be a
composition more picturesque - and even 11I1111o~:r:l~hic
- in the
clarity of the visions which it offers to the atr1111c.tlIisic*ner.The Call
of Camelot is the voice of the indwelling Goil, t11r inner Grail calling us t o be all that we truly are, all th:~t t ;od is. The work
utilizes an orchestra, other more subtle instrur~~c-nts
and soundeffects, and indescribably moving vocals to tr:1ll.;,~orlthe listener with Merlin through an enchanted forest; ridin/: with Arthur into
the thick of nn i~rchetypalspiritual-physical b:ct~lc; in procession by
twilight to a torchlit cathedral. Besides bcing cleeply mystical,
Miller's work alsn constitutes a most potent call t o action. If this is
the spiritual direction of the music of the future, then the years ahead
hold much of promise in store for us. Including lyrics by none other
than El Morya, the famous Adept and Chohan of the Great White
Brotherhood (adapted from his writings), the work peaks musically
and spiritually with a transccndent vocal meditation, 'The Revelation of the Holy Grail'.

263

CYRIL SCOlT, 'THE FATHER OF BRITISH MODERN

MUSIC'

Cyril Scott, whose writings we h;lvc had occiisic I ~ II ( I c1110tcfrom

several times in earlier pagcs, was nnothcr 1tli111i I , I ~ ~ ' I (-(l
I I c,ornposer
who may have drawn his inspiration f'sorli thc grc.;~tI>otly of' Adepts
known as the Great White Rrothcrlloocl. Ccrt;linly Scorr l~imself
believed that he did. 11is 193 1 l,rll~lic;ttion. Thr /n/l,~or(
r. o/' Mtt~icon Histoty a n d M o r a l ~ , "was
~ ~ an irnport;~ntand ~ ~ i l I r l l ' ~ ' V~ ~l l~lI~~ I I I W
in its study of the inner powcr of music and w;ls I,II(.01 111cI'irsl
books in modern times to renew people's thinkin!; ;111c\ .Iw;Il-r.rlr.;\ 1111
the subject. Yet what is perhaps even more fascin,~tit~!:
111;111 111rl+ook
itself is the background and life out of which it wit.; W r;t t rn. I:( lr I 111.
life-story of Cyril Scott serves well t o show us j~l:;c I ( ) wll.11 y,rc..rr :I
degree esoteric sources have influenced the art and ;lr1isls 01 I 1111- c1.1 y .
Cyril Scott was born at Oxton in Cheshire O I I L7 S r l ~ ~ r ~ l l l i r r .
1879. W e are told that by the age of two and a hall' hr W ; I L ;~ljlrI O
pick up tunes by ear and perform them on piano, ;incl r l ~ \ ~ l.II.;O
tl
improvise. Not, however, until he arrived at thc ripc olcl :I/:V 411'
seven did he receive instruction in how to read and writc n~usic.:~l
notation. Perhaps not surprisingly, by the time he had maturrcl S r o r ~
had developed into a virtuoso pianist. A. Eaglefield Hull, r l ~ r
musicologist and general editor of the Waverley Music LAovn,'s
Library, once wrote of him:
Last night I was spellbound at the nonchalant ease with which he
played through his suprrl> I'iltno Concerto from the full score MS..
rippling along (as 1 [lung tlic pages over almost continuously)
with truly astonishing gift.; of tcbchnique, touch and reading;
whistling the while flurc ;~ntlv~olinmelodies, and vocalizing horn
parts in a
nawl ~ o i l c ,like horn notes forced through
mutes. Where and how clicl he attain such tremendous
powers?1l 0
More than for his playing. I~owcver,it was as a composer th:tr
C g d Scott gained a wide ~.rl)nt;ttionin Great Britain and o n I I I ~ .
Continent during the early twentieth century. His works intlrltlr~l
symphonies and other orchestral pieces, choral compo.;ilir,l~\, .l
number of pieces of chamber music, and a very large 111l1l1l1r.1
111
songs and works for solo piano. Strangely though. hi, I I I I I * . ; , 1'. l 1 1 I Itknown today - strangely so, since during his day 111- w.1,. I I I W I 11 111r.u1
in the same breath as artists such as VauRhan WiIli;1111~~.
A I I I I 1111 1 t . 1 ~ .
Percy Grainger and Claude Debussg. A . l l . l ~ l l l - 1(.111
I
1 11111 ~ . . ~ i r l

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THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

around 1920 that Cyril Scott was, 'undoubtedly the richest harmonist we [the British] possess'.'10 In Debussy's estimate, Scott
was, 'one of the rarest artists of the present generation'.
Besides possessing the aforernentioncd talents, Cyril Scott was also
an accomplished conductor, a lecturer. a translator, and a writer on
.music. In addition to this, at the agc of 2 1 he began writing verse,
and became well known thereafter as A poet. His first published
collection of verse, The Shadows of .Filenre and the Songs of Yesterday, ' l 1 came out during his early twentirs, and reflected what was
then his rather pessimistic outlook of agl~osticism.The second, The
Grave of Eros and the Book of Mozrrnful Mdodies, l I 2 was written
during what he later called, not altogcrl~rrseriously, his 'decadent'
phase. However, he went through this pll;~sronly half-heartedly,
and without conviction. This phasc W;IS 1 1 ) c ~ abruptly
~ d
upon his
. ~.
discovery of Theosophy and Indixr
~ l l y Inde
.
cd, it would be
difficult to conceive of a morc g r ~ r
])l(. t11;111 t:he life of Cyril
Scott following his finding 01' 1 1
11 wisdoln in order to
demonstrate the close rrl;ctionsIiip 111.11 II.I\ ofirti prevailed in
,11111 I I I I I ' , ~ .~
modern times between esc~tcsici\t~~
According to Scott himself. hc W;IS c - v r ~ l r ~ contacted
~ ; ~ l l ~ directly
-l~
and
by the Great White Brothcrhoocl, :~ncl i ~ ~ t i t t l : ~ l c sponsored
guided by them in the production of mur.l~t r l 11;sn1.llill.r musical and
literary works. Already hailed by Eugrnc (,oo.;rns .IS the 'father of
British modern music', Scott now turnccl ; t l \ o I ( I 11r writing of
books; books on esotericism and alternacivc. ir~rcli~.i~~c'
,. He was , too,
the author of the series of three 'Initiate' hot4.ca,wl~ic
41 :ire still! very
well-known among csoteric circles. Thcsc wr.l.c. Iwnnea1 anonymously by Scott, using autobiographical mntrri.11j:ivc*n to him by an
unnamed poet. The first of the three, The Initi,r/r, .Some Impressions
of a Great Sou1113,describes the poet's cncoilr\trrs in England
with a high initiate of the Brothcrhood who ;tccr.pl.rdthe poe.t as his
disciple. The second book, The Initiate in ~ k rhrew W prldl
C 14,
follows the spiritual career and teachings of rhc initiatc in the
United States, and in the third volume this initiate of the Great
White Brotherhood again returns to the British Isles, after many
years of absence.
Some have doubtcd the veracity of these three immensely
readable and steadily popular books, considering them to be fiction.
But certainly Scott himself maintained that the books are factual
accounts of episodes in the life and teachings of the grrat soul about
whom they were written. Before continuing, what attitude st~ould
we take in regard to Scott's belief that he received ciirect con.tacts

CODA

265

from the Great White Brotherhood? Though rhr original material

upon which the 'Initiate' books wcre based wits n o t Scott's, neverof' thc books
theless he revealed later in life, when the anor~yn~ily
had been seen through, that he too had 1)1.(.11 . ;I tliscil>lc
.
of the
d and
initiate; indeed, that he was also ;i prtatag
oks hc
third books. And, he said, after thc events d
,111)od.
still continued to receive contacts f rom Mas
' 1
1
Did it, then, all happen just as Scott sala tnat 11 C I I r~
Ultimately, each of us must decide for oursrlvrs OII r l r ; l t point. I t
does seem impossible to believe that Scorr woultl Il;tvt. 1,rc.n
deliberately untruthful : throughout h s life, his nlwc )l111 r si11crri t Y ;incl
needle-sharp sanity were plainly evident. It is 1 , I I t l ~ cclllr'.;l ion o f
whether or not he was ever misled that W C I I I I I S I .II lllis ~ioitlt
suspend judgement either way. O n the one hancl, ir is 1 1 i ~1111knc,wli
for individuals who have received some contact fro111
later get carried away or misled by others into hrlit
contacts are continuing when they are not. Yet on I
there is no doubt but that at least some of Cyril Scott's I~c.licl'swrrr
founded on solid g o u n d . (And I do not say that they a11 wrrc I I ,t~ . )
For example, several of the disguised characters portrayed willli~i.
stand retrealed, and all recounted by Scor I
the 'Initiate' boc~- k now
s
concerning then1 has prcwed genluine. 'David Anrias', for onc. ;ln
astrologer and 'I+hcosophist in the books, was Brian Ross, who ;IC
1,n.
.
one time workea ror nnnle Desanr in India during her time as President of the Theosophical Socicty.
But to return to Scott's cxperiences themselves. The initiate,
0---Jing to Scott's account, w;ts as impressive an individual as onc
could imagine. Even as Vo1t;iire described Saint Germain, thc
'wondc:rman of Europe'. thc i ~ ~ i t i a tofe Scott's books also seemed
to be 'a man who never dics, ;111rl who knows everything'. Though
he rare ly demonstrated them, l ~ i hspiritual powers by which he could
himself are said to have been
influen ce the material worlrl ;trcj~~nci
quite SI perh human.
But the most important ;1\l)cbctof' the Initiate books frnm 111c
point of view of our present 1i11c. of investigation is that in rhr St;t~r-.~
this individual - called Justin Moreward Haig, or "JMH", i t 1 t l ~ r
books - was conductink; regular meetings of his chelas, rn;tllv OI
whom were prominent 1seople in their various lines nf work, ,rrtr/
who included among their ranks, nzusicians, poets, nr/ir/r ,rtt(l r~lrrtrr.~,
.
The point being that most among mankind are \in:ll~lrI ~ II I I I W ~ I I ~ [ I ~ :
to accept the reality and existence of thr R r o ~ l ~ r r l ~ r ~
;l1t
1 1r1 ~: l~ .r t . 111
any case not infrequently incapable of rihstr~.l~in~:
t l ~ r . M , I , % Ir-v.;' I3lll.r
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'LLCVI U I

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THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

teachings in the form that they are given out. Therefore, besides the
giving forth of their pure and undiluted words, the Masters have
often taken the course of training disciples to stGP-down their
message and vibration. In the broadest sense, this is literally a stage
in the stepping-down of the frequencies of the Word. The disciples
then promulgate through their line of service the principles of ethics,
morality and spirituality, as well as any more specific concepts
which the times might demand for the betterment of the race. But
they d o so without usually ever revealing the Source of their initial
inspiration. In this way, many chelas of the Brotherhood have
worked throughout history - in the arts, the sciences, and also as
politicians and as the great, moral leaders of men. Many a famous
and important episode of history - such as the American Revolution, which WC discussed earlier, to name but one - has an entirely
different and unrevealed story behind it if the truth were but
known: the story of the causes behind thr cffccts; the story of the
Adrpts of the Great Whitc Brotherhood and thosc historical figures
who were, unbeknownst to thc world, tlir~irchrlas. This has a most
important bearing upon our sttldy o i t l ~ csccrzt power of music. For
the story of the prcat music ol' ;111cicnttin1c.s. and also that of the
Western classical tradition - oi w h : ~;~~ c ~ u ; ~inspired
lly
it and of
where much of it really camc fro111- r~ onr ~ ~ ~ l i goes
z l $ ~ completely
rtnsuspected by all but the few.
And yet, a hint of this story of tlic :11!1- t,:111 Pt'~.I~;ip~
be gathered
from the life and writings of Cyril Scat t
Following his encounter with esntcrir,isn~,S r c ~ ~was
r never the
same person again. Oriental philosophy. " I ' l ~ c + r 1 1 > 1 1and
~
the practice
~;
in life.
of yoga and meditation became his a b t a l ~ i l ~interest
Immediately, from this moment on, s~~ct,c*c.cling
compositions
entered into the realms of mysticism and Orirn1:tlism. From his pen
there now came musical works such the tl inclu-style Jungle B o o k
the darkly magical Sphinx, Lotus-land, the Cl~i?rrse
Songs, and many
more. His third volume of verse, The Voil.c* of the A n ~ i e n t , " ~
displayed a radical change in subject matter ancl cmotional effect, as
did succeeding volumes. Scott's raison d'e"tre as an artist in any
medium was now absolutely goal-oriented towards the highest
purpose and aim in life - the spiritual path.
Where would Scott have taken his stand in relation to the
subjects we have discussed in this book, about the use and misuse of
the power of music? With regard to the artistic directions of the
fellow-composers of his generation, Scott made his position quite
clear. In a hard-hitting but well-argued criticism of the avant-garde,

CODA
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267

I'l~~lrlropl!~
of Modernism in its (:nni~rcttni, r<lirh M r t . ~ i c , " Cyril
~

~rnp;lredthe Modernists t o a lnan who scts out on a walking

the intention of never, unrlrr :my circun~st;~nces,
setting
,c111 ;in established road. In keeping t o such ;r rigid doctrine,
\ I ltlrrnist thereby finds not freedom. hut tllr u l t im;rtr I)oncl;~pc.
I I C is not free to retain those wcll-tricd :~ntlprovctl l ~ r i r ~ c i l ~ ~ c s
11 :trr the very foundation of bcauty ;~nrlsl~l)limir~
ill r ~ ~ ~ ~ s i c .
I 1114.
Mocternists Scott often, in fact. prrfc-rrril I O c;~ll 'MollI 1 I..I\' !) True freedom, Cyril Scott ;rcgurcl. l i r ~wit h 1 1 1 ~cc,nii~clsrr
.uI rl\c. Romantic class, who is able to krep to thr r.;t;tI~lisl~c.d
~>;~ths,
I I O I , as he chooses.
Now it is evident from the second Tniriatr hook III;II '1 M l l ' 'S
Ir 4 [r of chelas included literary and othcr artists of W(-~rlcl
rcpllr r. 'I'll(.
I I I, lividual who supplied his own autobio~aphici~l
tiintcri;~lI 1 SI.I11 I
.I+, ;I foundation for the books, is himself descrihcd ;IS 1101 11 :I I ) ( N - ~
. I I I ~ a composer. (In the books this is the first-prrsrr~~
II;II.I..II~~,
tli\guised under the name of 'Charles Broadbcnt'.) Then, :lr Ic:1s1
I W O other composers are referred to, one of whom we now know t o
11:tvebeen Cyril Scott. This fact, that Scott himself was onc ol' tllc
r,ircle of chelas in America for a time, is confirmed in an adricndl~m
on the subject of the Initiate books which is to be found in the 1 l)! 5
cdition of Scott's .4n Outline of Modern Occultism. It seems t h : ~ ~
Scott must have been, the individual referred to as ' L y d Herbert'.
since this is the only composer who turns up in both the second and
the third Initiate chronicles; and according to Scott's own
addend~un referred to nhovc, he himself does appear in these
volumes.
The various artist-chelas of 'TMH' are said t o have been under
the guidance of the ~ r o t h r r h o c doi Adcpts of East and West, the
role of the composers being I O bring forth a God-aligned music for
thc furthering of the evolution o f LIIC race. It can be seen therefore.
should we choose t o accept the :~ccount,just how direct an influence
on the music of the worlcl rllr secret guiding hand of thr
Broth~erhoodcan prove to h(*.
As for the individual n;lmed in the books as 'Lyall Hcrhc,r~'.
proba bly identifiable as Scott hin~sclf,it is worth noting th:~t; I I or1r
11 during the final volume, The Initiate in the Dark Cvdr. ' l " .I
strr says t o him: 'And you, you w d write a new kincl r ) l I I I I I ~ . I ~
s well as a bcmk on the subject - for which y c w
~ ~~l lI,., r.lvr*
t.111~. 1st
3pLdal preparatory training at a Master's hnnrlq'
nbrance Scott's path-breaking book, Mtrrir,, Itr (PIrt4f 1~1//1rrrrr1.1
~ghoutthe age^.
1

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THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Yet regardless of who 'Lyall Herbert' really was, there is one

passage involving him which never. ceases to fascinate. For at one
stage this well-known English composer is taken, as is 'Charles
Broadbent' the poet, to the abode of a Master in the English countryside. (And we should note that in his addendum Cyril Scott,
writing as Cyril Scott, refers to this Master and his estate in the
South West of England in such a way, as to indicate first-hand
knowledge.) Here, 'Herbert' and 'Broadbent' are specially
prepared to c l a i r a ~ d i e n t hear
l ~ a celestial music from superphysical
realms of existence. And then:
From far away I heard the strains of an organ with which was
mingled the sound of voices so pure and cthcrcal as to suggest
the chanting of a celestial choir, wafted o n ;I pcaceful evening
breeze. The music was unlike any music I 1i;ltl hcard before; it
was subtle, yet melodious, sweet, yrt clc*voill of ;ill sentimental
lusciousness; at one moment powc.rf~tl : t t ~ c l ;~wc.-awakening,at
another soft and tender as the caress of ;l11 .III~:I-I's Ii;111d.
'My Brother Koot Hoomi pl;1yinl: O I I I l i s orj;;in
and the
voices you hear are those of thc C;;~ncll~;~t
v;lb, . .. I .isicn well, and
remember, for one day you sh;ill givc. 1i11111
niusic to the
world ...'
It was Sir Thomas who had spoken, . I I I ~ I Ili:; words were
addressed to Lyall.
The music continued for a while, then I:r.~tl~~.~llv
1;tded away,
and there was another silence.'I6

...

si11(.11

This passage is by no means quoted here f o r ~ l r c . tlltbre purpose

of recounting a thrilling or controversial talc. 1t.rrl1c.1.the account
scrvcs well to indicate just how strongly ,t:r~itlr.cl many great
rnnsici:tns may have been, though the world
nc)t known it, and
how closc t o our cveryday life these guiding prlwc-l.s Iivve at times
approachcci. 'I'hough there would not be room t o irlc.lude them all
here, there cxist ql~itca number of such account\, in which mortals
appear to have brcn thc beneficiaries of a parting of thc veil, during
which they hcnrd a cc.lcsti;tl music of indescrih;ihlc sublimity. Sometimes the individuals conccrticd have been spiritual seekers; sometimes they have bccn know11 composers of acknowledged stature.
T o refer briefly to two of'th(, Illore widely-quoted episodes: Robcrt
Schumann wrote music at ;i l a ~ cstagc in his lift which he said was
dictated to him by angels, a clair11which his wife belicved, stating
after his death that, 'It is in th.e music of Robert Schumann that the

269

angels sing.' Though the critic could also point to Schumann's

mental instability, the same can in no way be said of Hiindel, who
felt that his Messlab, one of the greatest pieces of music evcr written,
had likewise been revealed to him. During its composilion hr. felt
the very gates of heaven had been opened to him, and lit. was ;thlc
to see and hear the other-worldly chorusing of s ~ ~ e r ~ l ~ ;~111d
sic;~l
divine beings. As he later declared: 'I think I did scc ; t I I I lr:~vrn
before me and the great God Himself.' It is recordctl r l l ; ~ IIIV
~
experience of penning the work moved him so greatly r l l ; ~ t ~c.;cl.s
flowed with and blotted the ink. Considering both thc' Iowc.r.ltl):
stature and timeless perfection of the work, as well a s i l l ; II-I),I!I~I.
weight is added to the claim that it was revealed to him, ; t l l c l I I I ~ I IIlc
did not have to strive painstalungly to put it together himst-It, 1)s I l l r .
startling $act that it was written in but three short weeks, ancl (111rit1\:
one of the most trying periods of his life. The concept ol 'rc.vc..~lr.tl
music' is not often gven consideration during o u r I W ( - \ ' - I ~ I
materialistic age, yet, whatever its explanation, it seems to I l c , I vc.1.y
definite phenomenon, and one deserving of further study. In. ,1 l l i 5
respect, we must not forget either that in both traditional ~ ~ I I ~ L U I I S
and modern esoteric literature there is also the concept o f r11r1.r
being two sides. That is, the good and the evil. Suppressing a sliglil
shudder, we can recall again those mysterious words o f Stravinsky
about The Rite of S!ring: 'I heard, and I wrote what I heard. I WAS
the vessel through which Le Sacre du Printemps passed.' As for our
own day, more than one esoteric authority has claimed t h a t virtually
all of the lyrics of the morc heavy rock bands are unconsciously
received as dictations from ~naliciousdiscarnate entities - a claim
which becomes not quite s o unbelievable when one pays close attention to these lyrics, t o see just what cxnctly it is that is being said.
For example:
Ugh.

Ahhh.[A poetic start ! - T>.'I', ]

Can't help feeling strangr.
The moon is up I think I'm p n n a change.
You're so smooth and tmclrr.
A livin' breathin' dream.
I'm listen' for your scream.
I'm almost human; I'm almost a man,
I'm almost human.
'Almost Human' - K i v

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

CODA

The male rock star, Alice Cooper, says that he took the name after
contacting a discarnate called Alice Cooper during a seance, and
that it is the discarnate who partly takes over his actions and singing
on stage. All said for the sake of publicity? Our answer probably
depends on just how real, or else how non-existent, we consider the
non-physical dimensions to be. Certainly the idea of evil entities
bringng forth new and disruptive forrns of music through their
human channels receives a number of mentions in early Christian
literature. St Chrysostom, for onc, said that: 'lest demons introducing lascivious so& should overthrow cvcrything, God established
the psalms'. Rarely, however, has thr proc9cssof musical revelation
(from one 'side' or the other) hcrn so cxndidly described as in
Scott's book.
Meanwhile, concurrent with thc cpisoclc o f the musical revelation, Cyril Scott was at work 11po11I I I C hook which was first
released in 193 3 under thc rirlr. ' / ' / W Itr/lrrc~t/c.r
of Music on History
this one was released
a n d Morals.1o9 Unlikr. t l ~ rI n i ~ i ~ ~ I)ook\,
rt.
under Cyril Scott's own nllnlr. I I I I ') IH ;l11 11pdated edition came
out, being the still-nv;lil:~l)leAI r r r r r , 11, .\rc rrt lt//lrrence Throughout the.
Ages.' Only in r.1ii.i sr~ontlc - c l i ~ ~ rt )l ~ c~ l Scrhtl 1.c.vca1his belief that
both editions o f ~ I I Chc~ok11:lcl Irrc.11i ~ ~ s ~ ~ i11po11
r t . t l lliln by numerous
and detailed disc~~.isIo~v,
will1 K o o t I l o o l ~ ~I ..II
i
Sillgh. one of the
great Aderrs wl~c)11:1ti ;~lso I>crn hrllir~cl I l ~ rI;)rmation of the
Theosophic.;~lSocirry in thc I;ist quarter oit11r ~ ~ i ~ l r ~ rcentury.
cnth
After ;I Ior~):; ~ l l t l 11.11it1'11l lifC during wliir,l~IIV t 1 . 1 1 l ~pioneered the
reawakeninf: o f 1n;in's awarcncss of thc secrrl Ilowcr inherent in all'
music. Cyril SCOIIp;~sscdfrom this world in 107 1 . And yet, after
all, to ~ U Ir his own lines :

I I I I I I . 11;id been one of the major inspiring factors behind his creative

270

W h a t nrr / / J P r~~nrld'sfoolish
toys, anddeath's ~phmn~rral
sorrows,
rntll~rr,yut by the Endless,fleeter than lyb~?ring'sflashes.'l'
Seerni~~:
Needless to w y , nl:tny among the mainstream of the music world
looked ask:incr ;II these 'eccentricities' of Scott's; his talk of
'Masters', his hooks 011 alternative medicine, esotericism and the
like. Further, it I1,15 I~ccnsuggested that his decline in popularity
after the heady days of his young maturity, when some felt him to
be the father of British modern music, must be directly related to
this 'dissipation' of his t;ilents.
But in an autobiography published at the age of ninety (Bone of
Contention, Aquarian Press, 1969), Scoa discounted this, and
claimed that esotericism, and in particular the Masters who guided

271

I I I I I I N Indeed,
II.
at the age of sixty-five he had made his own
11f.1
\u11a1decision to bring his years of composing to an end; but the
M;~.;rrrs,he says, had urged him to continue, which he did until the
r11t1ol' his life. (At the Masters' own request, Scott recounted, the
III-;T work he next completed was his third opera, Maureen
( 1 'M'ira.)
Certainly it must be said that whatever the source of his inspira-1cse revelations of Scott's arc of major importance in again
jtrating the reality of the influence of esotericism upon music.
. ~
-ver
. our own standpoint with regard to Scott's unusual claims,
I l1;1t he believed them makes the great influence of esotericism upon
llic music undeniable. That a modern composer of such significance
sl~ouldhave felt himself to be in rapport with the legendary Great
Whit e Brotherhood is a quite extraordinary fact. And who can say
I 1l;lt among Cyril Scott's many compositions there are not those
whicln are indeed his transcriptions, to the best of his ability, of the
nspired upon him by the Master Koot Hoomi, and which are
sct reflections of the music of the spheres ?
,as once said of Scott that he was a hundred years in advance
01 ms generation. Perhaps this gives a hint as to the meaning of the
I;iter decades of his life. For while the critics, music publishers and
Iwrformers generally ignored both his early and later work. and
while he more than once felt discouraged and ready to throw in the
rowel, he was prevailed upon by those he believed to be his Guides
ro cont inue composing up until the last. This, even though the works
1"
CLIL ldrgely unpublished snct i~n~trrformed.
ne autobiography Scntt st;ttm that fro111rltr Mnsters' point of
he first thing is to get t h r work writ1c.n; the rest if needs be
lit - sometimes even :IS Ion/: :I\ t i l l ;~fterthe composer's
death'. True it is that many 01 r l ~ c * I I I O ~ . ~f;tnious works of today's
concert: hall repaoire were :IIIIIO!JI , ) t . ~ l l [Inknown during the lives
o f rhosc who brought them Llr111.'I'.tkr most of the works of J.S.
. ,
.
)finished1 Symphony of
rcvived in the 1800s) 01.
cript after h s death) for
r t (discovered as a iii>c;~rtlt
m e forth from his pen, a
P. If Scott's work wns inrlrc,
~lunulrdvears in advance of his );rrlrlauull, it may therefore be most
rntcreslting to ol3serve the corlrsr of events concerning it in years to
come.
....-.-L

W.

L..

ESOTERICISTS REDISCOVER MUSIC

- Or then again, did they ever forget it? W e have seen that there

272

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

exists a certain horse-and-carriage relationship between esotericism

and music. And this explains why it should be that recent decades
have witnessed the gradual surfacing o f a new, twentieth-century
esoteric manner of studying the tonal art:i.With tlle re-emergence of
-- ..--l:-~callaittionof the inner
esotericism in general, a new and wider
secrets of sound and music has naturally Ixgun to follow.
In fact, the first esoteric study of the properties of sound to take
place within comparatively recent times was that of Baron von
Reichenbach (1 788-1 869) during the last century. Reichenbach's
study was part of a more extensive str~clyinto a mysterious force or
energy which he called Odic Foric. Ilistinct from magnetism or
- lic Force seems to
electricity-, yet related to each ir
have been the same 'extra' an
k n o w n as yet to
science, which numerous rnodc
~ a v ecome across,
calling it everything from vital Sorr-r 01-rlhcsic cnergy to bioplasma
and orgone energy. Reichenbach'.; m;r 11y clrl ;iilcd cxperiments with
this force, which could br srrn :~n(lc1rcc.l-il)rcl hy clairvoyant senin srsi:~li~c-(l
1itr111in 1 8 4 4 , and are in
sitive~,were first p~~blishrd
r.lrlitlrcl 'The Mysterious Odic
print today as the book po.;llll~nlnt~.;ly
F ~ r c e . " ~ W h a t c l i s t i ~ ~I i~ ~I I ~ I I I I from
I
most later
y
manner in
researchers into this forct. is r l ~ r1 1 . 1 1 1 I t 1 1 l : l r l sc,icntific
which he went about his work.
Within a complctcly darkencc1 n)ont, 111rst.~~silives
were able to
see Odic Force as 'Iigllt'. Discnvcrin!: r l l ~ \ . I(r~c,ltcnbachdevised a
number of experiments to see how V ; I I . ~ O111i11gs
I I , ~ affected this
mysterious 'light'-force. Having ronclr~c.~r.~l
()elk cxperiments in
relation to electricity, magnetism, psycl~c,l(
colours, chemical
w . ~ v c of
. trying
out the
reactions and crystals, he then had the hr:ri~~
.
effect of sound. Standing in a darkened morn 11 11 .I Viennese sensitive, Reichenbach struck a bell. Immediately 111csensitive reported
that the bell had become visible and lurninor~sto him. Apparently
sound itself emitted a radiation of Odic Forcr. While this force was
both invisible and inaudible to the average perhorl, most clairvoyants
could see it. Reichenbach tried striking orher oh1c.cts- a metal rod, a
horseshoe magnet, a different bell, glass tumblers - and all were
reported as having become luminous by a succession of sensitives.
The degree of luminosity depended upon the strength of the blow,
which is to say, the volume of the sound. The light was also
brighter, the hlgher the pitch. It was further noted that as the tones
audibly vibrated or oscillated, so too was the light seen to become
brighter and dimmer. Upon a violin being played, not only the
strings but also the whole rrsonance box became luminous to a

I I I I ~ I I I > ~o~ f. obscrvers, One bell, being co~lrimro~~sly

struck for quite a
~ ~ ~ I I I I vI~acl
, the effect (to the scnsitivcs) o f lii:htin~ up 'hi. entire
I~MIIII. Il~c
obvious inference from all of rhis is tll;~~:,
wb;r~rvcrthe
F.

l11ik11ow11
cnergy is, it radiates from all music;~linsrrumrn~h; ~ r l t lfrom
,111 I l~ingswhich emit sound.
( ) L I T own century has witnesscd the appcarnncr OI I I I , I I I ~ o(.(,l~lt
I
!!~,otrpsand systems of esoteric thought. While many ~ I I I . I ~ I!,i~riil;rr
r.lrments to each other, they also each possess tlirir O W I I cIi~,li~~(.t
It;uures; but a number of these groups, rnovcmcnls , I I I I ~ NI.MJ/Ij:c
writers have had things to say about thc esoteric * > i ~ l Ir, I I I I I I \ I ( . .
I Iuivcrsally, they agree with the beliefs of the a n c i r n ~ .(~111,. , ; I I ~11
New Age writer, Corinne Heline, who was born into t11v I ' I . ~ , I I I ~ I I ( . I I I
I )uke family of America's Old South, wrote c o n s i d c r : ~ l ~O IlI~ I llrwbject. She considered there to be t w o distinct strtams 111 1 1 1 ~I ~ I I I \ ; ~ .
OS the world. Each releases a different tonal force into ~ l r cp l : r r ~ c , ~ .
Consonances bring forth the constructive force and srsr-ll{:ll~rn
man's higher nature; dissonances bring forth the destrrlc~ivtI O S ~ T
;tnd strengthen man's desire nature. Jazz and modern p o p u l : ~n111aic
~
she believed to be responsible for many of society's present ills : '~:ITI
and juvenile delinquency are twins. Where one flourishes thc o ~ l ~ r r
will appear.'13 O n the optimistic side, besides extolling thr arcis1 ic.
merits of Western and Eastern classical music, and writing COII.
siderably of their beneficial effects, Corinne Heline was also
supremely confident that in the near future we are to witness tlicbirth of a more advanced and evcn more sublime form of tonal art a New Age music, the effccrs of which will radically transform all of
civilization. After the tradition of Plato and Aristotle, Corinne
Heline believed that music and man's dcgree of spirituality and
other character traits are indissolubly linked; that in fact styles of
music and man's degree of spiritu;rlity :
stand apart only to our lirn~tedpcrcc.ption. In their essence they
are inseparably united, ,end In higher realms of being it i.:
recognized that musical ~ ~ ~ ~ t l c ~ \ t . r and
n d i nspiritual
g
realization
are identical.'
Such writings seem definitely to foreshadow an imminent rn,I,ot
resurgence of the Pythagorean dnd other ancient stylm of I I111lkIII!:
on the subjects of sound and tonal art Yet for this rctllrli t o 111,lrrll
principles to be truly powerful and effective in in arl lrll~,11 i ~1 ,1 l t r . l ~
that it will need to combine not only a rrrltr!:rr~rt. ,,I Ictr~nc.~
wisdom, but also something entirely new and r r v ~ ~ l1tl ~~1l1 . 1 r ySII(11 .I

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276

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

In this mission of messengership, Mark and Elizabeth Prophet have

given forth in their lectures and books, through the Summit Lighthouse, a great wealth of teachings on a variety of New Age
subjects. And among this system of thought and its practical
application we find much of relevance to our study of the power of
sound. In The Science of Rhythm for the Mastery of the Sacred Energies
of Life,Iz2 a lecture released in recorded form. Elizabeth Clare
Prophet relates which of the seven rays and seven chakras are particularly associated with which class of musical instrument and
which style of music. The lecture, which constitutes the Summit
Lighthouse's fundamental relensc 0 1 1 the subject of music,
encompasses a great deal of new inforrna tion; but at least a little of
it we can best summarize in the form of ;I Itahlc, as shown in Table S.
Among the many other aspects o f r l ~ csc~~cr~cc.
of the Word which
interest to us
the Summit Lighthouse has releasccl i h O I I ~ *of'
in this book. This is thc practicc of I I Y ~ I III ~I ~ ' science of the spoken
Word itself - which so clo.rt,iy re.wml~lrs\/kr cirrtfiul and conscious use
made of the spo4erz W o r d t b rrrtricrt/\.
~
W e have revicwcd in c.:trlicr cl~,~l>lcr:;
Ilow the Chinese used
gigantic musical ensemhlcs ollr of' t
1)c.lic.l' I II;II they radiated forth
an uplifting spirirual energy t h r o u g l ~ c 1111.
, ~ ~jrl;~r~ct;
~
how the Hindus
have for millennia given mantras :~ntl~ ) I I . I ~ , I I I + 1'1 ) I . I ~ sustainment
C
of
civilization and the physical equilil>riu~~~
I i l I I I V l)l;~net
; how highly
developed was the Egyptian priesthe)otl's sopllisticated system of
invocation (as well as their training in how t11(. sl>irituallyadvanced
individual should use speech in everyday lil'c.). I<csearching for this
book into the power of sound and the nioclrr~~
lrscs of the spoken
word, I was struck by the peculiar absencc tc)tl;cy of such practices.
The ancients believed the use of sound t o br rllc tt~c.)stpowerful key
of all for the unlocking of the door t o higher .;r;ilrs of consciousness
as well as for the effecting of practical changes in the world at large.
In contrast to this, however, modern spiritu:~];ispirants and worldservers concentrate almost exclusively upon silent techniques of
meditation. At most, the modern devotee has known only how to
pray, or to sing a hymn, or has uttered a few printed lines from a
book. The giving of Eastern chants is, too, not an altogether
vanished practice. Yct none of this bears any resemblance to, say,
the extremely scientific use of consonants and vowels as practised in
ancient Egypt in order to accomplish selfless, right-motivated, and
highly specif c acts of whitc magic. The head of the Summit Lighthouse, Elizabeth Clare Prophet, believes that this science of the
spoken Word is thc missing link in modern man's aspirations for

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278

CODA

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

self-evolution. Could it indeed be that the exclusively silent path is

in some ways an unbalanced onc, given the dire needs of our age for
effective changcs t o take place swiftly on the world scene? Certainly
it was believed of old that whereas meditation and prayer raise
mankind's consciousness to G o d , only the scientific use of the throat
chakra, applied with concentration and determination, can fully
invoke the energies of G o d down into the world of form in which
w e live. And in a remarkably similar vein t o this concept of antiquity, thousands of people today also believe the spoken W o r d to be
capable of creating and sustaining a most potent a n d planet-wide
revolution into higher consciousness.
The most usual form in which the Summit Lighthouse makes use
of the power of sound is in the giving of what are called dynamic
decrccs. Dynamic decrees are specific worded formulas for the sublimating and perfecting of personal and planetary conditions. I n the
standard exposition of the subject. The .'icience of the Spoken Word,
penned by M a r k L. and E1iz;theth Clnrt ~ r o ~ l l c ;w. e read:
Various yogic systems of mc.dit:ition offer m cthods Wrhereby the
mind of man can bc stillcd ;ind ;I ,qrr:~tcr 3Ittunemer i t with the
...
Divine be achieved. Sotnr of' III(QW mrthods 1nccome
haphazard
c l , ) rccluirc an advanced
when applied by Wrsttrn rn;in. I ~ I Itllcy
.
mental and spiritual disciplinc o r 1 t l ~ r13;1r'1 of 111cone employing
them. Decrees, on the other h;tntl, ; u r rc.l:rrivc.ly simple to master
once the basic principles are i i n d r r s t ~ ~ r ~; ~t ln: t lthey are far more
efficacious.
It must be understood that decrccs !:ivc.ri without feeling and
without thought will not produce the l'1111 I>rrirction which they
are intended to bring about; for man nrusr havc in his consciousness the correct patterns of thought ; i r l t l feeling which act as
rcceptacles for thc energies he invokes from I he Godhead.
Decrees which are sct forth according to the science of thc
spoken W o r d begin with a preamble. Thcsr preambles direct the
attention and the energies of thc decrecr to his o w n I AM
Presence (the inner G o d Self) and to his Holy Christ Self (the
Christ-identity), as well as t o those cosmic beings w h o havc madc
mighty progress in God's kingdom.
These preambles are invocative of the highest G o o d - that is
to say, they invoke the goodness of G o d by an appeal, made in
thc name of G o d and his Christ, to the hierarchies of heaven to
anchor their energies and their love in order to amplify to levels
of almost limitles comprehension the action of the decree as it is

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01 c,~cl.~
c,;i11 with fervor ,111tl I I J V I . ,~~llorn;ctically
(.11(.rgic$01' the heavenly IIIP.I<, 0 1 1 I ~ c a l ~ , ~ 01
l f thc
I I ~~ 1 n1;tnkind.
1
In addition, drcr.r.gm5 ;it-(. ; I tl(.lin~tc..;t;cti.-

!:I~III,:
1 1 1 1 3

. I

I S L I I I ~ rh;tt thc. mind of the indiv~llo,llt 1 l . i ) ' Iollow 10 ;L

I ~ ~ I .[l
S I t,c~nclusion.
~
And in this case, it i\ llir ~ I I I l~r.ioti
I ~
01' the
I
01 thc W o r d t h ~ tis made flesh l ) y 111r 1 1 1 1 1 ~ 1 . 1 1 1 1 tllr
(-1) W o r d , that is, by the power of dr~.rc.r\. lly I O \ I I I ~ L I:IW
I I I * wortlcd ideas mzist eventuate in a c t ~ ~ : ~ lwl1c.11
~ t v tl1c.v . t ~ . r
I Io..~*.t.{l in the namc of G o d and b y the , ~ u l l l o s i ~I )I I 11i.( : l 1 1 I \ I
1,1#

111 1 1 1

I I ! ~ ~ I ~ , ,

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a l l ~,ta;~lize
that whcn groups of indivic111,tls.Ire

I'l~ok~'
WIIO

understand the power of thr 3 ( 1 1 1 , 1 1 ( 1' 1 1

III,II

I I ~ ' I I I . I II ,

I~II,I:.I,L:I.I~

,r

ir~

~ r ~ v o l c the
i ~ ~ energies
g
of G o d , they are nor merely ;iclclin!: I ~ I I W I - I
l l ~ number
r
of people in the group on a onc-plus-ol~c.I~.I..IV..11111
I I I V V arc cntcring into a vcry old covenant of thc srlu.irc- wl11111
*.llll.lrcsthe release of power to accomplish the spoken \2.!otiI Iry
111~.I lrtmbcr o f individuals who are decreeing and by rllr IIIIIIII)I.I
1 1 1 I ~nes
I that cbath decree is given.
Vv'c hcartily recommend individual decrees t o acconil>ii~;l~
I I I I I O ~ blessings
~
in the lives of those who will disciplinc thclrl5c.lvi.s in this ritual of invoking light to a darkrned world. Kur
,:l.c)iip decreeing, when accompanied by an intense visualization
r ~ f ' the good desired, is mort eificacious on a world scale th;tn
decreeing and will result in a spccdy responsc to those
i~~cfividual
c.lrgaged in it, not only t o themselves but also on bchalf of all
Inankind . .
Rhythm is also important in decrees. Proprr rhythm crcates a
most penetrating projection of the spirit~l~il
vibrations that will
magnetize all over the plrinct t h r clualitics of God that arc bcing
invoked through the dccrccs. V1r ~~iorncnr~irn
of these waves that
form undulating circles over thc pl,~~lctnr.y
body creates an intcnsification of light whercvtsr drvotccs cortir together t o participatr
.
..~ k endeavor.'13t
e
It\.

'Ibese dynamic group-dccrcc stssic,ns of the Summit L i p h ~ l ~ o ~ ~ h 3 ~ .

....- L, said t o represent the very first genuine re-emergcncc, ~ I I C I I , 01
tual science and practice which was once basic :~nlrl r l t : I I I I *
: priesthoods. Only by looking vcry, very far hi1c.k i l l I 1 1 1 1 ~1 1 0
W C cncounter records of anything similar. Such a pt:rt,r ir.1. 1.. L I r [ ~ ~ri.tl
t

c,tIl

t Copyright <C'11)83 byCHllRCHUNNERSALANDTRlI~hlP1-lAN-I;

1x1 l \ &\#1\I \ I ~ I , : , ~ I V I I I ,
Montana 59047. All RighrsReservcd. Rcprintcd h Pcrrnl<tr,<~~
1 I ~ I I I Ol ; , , \.
IYbrdby Mark L. and Elizabeth Clare Prophrt, pp. 2 5 . 0 , -IO-!, I'rH ,I

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T H E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

CODA

taking place in the royal standard of Ur, the city of Abraham, for
the purpose of driving a wave of glooni and pestilence away from
the city. Priest-King Gudea and his musicians are accomplishing this
by the power of music and vocalizations, given together. Corinne
Heline commented on the depiction :

them harpers, who, playing on the harp, chant sacred hymns t o

Apollo in the temple, setting forth his glorious acts'. Diodorus'
account may refer t o the same chanters as a Welsh account brought
t o light recently b y John Michell, the scholar and author. In his
classic work, C i q of Revelation,12' John Michcll mcntions one of the
Welsh Triads, verses of great age which incorporate oral traditions
from bardic historians of prehistoric times. From this account it
would seem thdt the power of the W o r d was not only once used in
Britain, but also, was evidently applied with a great deal of
sophistication.
The Triad states that once, long ago, the .British Isles possessed
three perpetual choirs where saints maintained a ceaseless chant,
twenty four hours a day. T h e three choirs of pure and illumined
c-;nts were located at Glastonbury, Stonehenge and Llan Illtud
Vavvr (near Llantwit Major in Glamorgan). (This was, we must
ember, thousands of years before the first Christian community
estaldished at Glastonbury.) A t each of the three locations 2,400
saints maintained the tag-chant, a hundred for each of the twenty
four hours. T h e chanted verbal formulas of spiritual power are said
t o have varied with the hours, seasons, years and other cycles. John
Michell states :

280

Esotericists understood that it w ~ by

s the magic of music that a
cloud of evil and error which envelopcc1 the city was being transmuted, and the city's vibratory rhythm\ correspondingly raised.
This important function of music will \orncday be rediscovered
and used.'
O f course, different individuals react in I wo v u y different ways t o
the idea of men and women acting :IS LOII,II rr,insformers for sacrcd
energy to enter into the earth from hi!:Iic~ t l i ~ ~ ~ c n s i oofn sbeing. T h e
contemporary materialist vicwpoin~ w(.~.I I I ( . 1111iversein terms of
I ) y cx)incidence - and in
matter - as atoms, planets ancl st;u-~l'orri~c~l
which the phenomcnon o f lilt.
t of nature, being
almost completely irrc.1C \ J ; l l I l 1 1 1 l
' ~ h i n ~Yet
s . t o the
spiritual idealist,. lifc .- , 1 1 1 1 1 l 0
,111 - is what the
universe is a l l ohor,/. 11.11. vrry ~ I O ~ I I I , 1 1 1 t l l. ) l l r \., 0 4 ( ' of the material
Creation of atoms , 1 1 1 c l L V O I I C I ~ ~W , I ' , 1 0 1 , 1 1 1 1 I I I ( . . I jil.ttform on which
life could exi.;t ;111dc i o l v c . . ' l ' l ~ c t~wr o tlivr~,sc.vic.wpoints are never
I~
rc;~c~ions
10 r l ~ vi t l c * , ~ol-mystical chants
more divcrpnr t l i ; ~~ ~I [l~cil.
by which LII(. , I I I C ~ C I I L SI I C ~ ~ C . V C .tCh~r r v i l ~t r I I I I C world could be
Yet t o the
dispellecl. '7'0 the. ma~crialist,thr idea is c l u i l c - il*l,,~~ional.
mysticnl o ~ ~ t l o onothing
k
could bc more scn5il)lt 111;cnthat the most
highly c-volvc.d phcnomcnon in the physic:cl 11nivrl.sc.- man - should
bc ~ b l cI O ~1c.tas an invokcr and transrnittrr o f tlic highcst of all
forms of force. For this force or spiritual cnc*r;:y, while as yet being
unknown t c ) sc.icncc. is believed by the mystic 1 1 ) he the controlling
and g u i d i n ~forcc behind all the knownphysic;~lI,)rces.
From tllc. mystical point of view, Priest-King Gudea and the
musicians o f liis city were simply utilizing a known and tested mcans
of dispelling p l ; ~ g t ~;ind
c other evils. They would only have been
guilty of irration;tlity ;tnd foolishness had they.failed t o d o so.

THE SCIENCE OF THE WORD IN ANCIENT BRITAIN

A hint that the sclencc of sound may have been used in ancient
Britaln is provided by the historian Diodorus of the first century
B C . H c wrote of 'an Island in the ocean over against Gaul' wherein
was found a city consecrated t o Apollo. 'whose citizens arc most of

281

J a l u

T h e song that the elders sang at the perpetual choir was an

astrological chant, pitched t o the music of the spheres, celebrating
the order of thc hcavcns and guiding the ritual order of life on
earth. The templc wab thc central power station of the whole
country, transmitting throughout the nation the current of the
divine word, gcneratc~l through the ceaseless activity of its
astrologers, priests and officials. l

'

The similarities between this , ~ n t lthc huge Chinese orchestras arc

obv ious. However, the sacrctl gc.~icr.;ctionof power b y the saints o f
l ~
significance, for alrnl-151
anclient Britain was of a r i i ~ l t ~grcater
always it is the enunciated Wol.LI, tllc sounds spoken by Man :I%I I I ~
incarnate Christ, which is of' ;I grcater efficacy than the s n ~ ~ n ~ l ' .
inanimate instruments.
Plotting the three sites on 3 map, John Micheil found 1 1 1 ~
spaced equally apart. From Llantwit t o G l a s t o n b t ~ r ~ . I I ) * ~
miles, and Glastonbury t o Stonehenge is the silrnr
The three sites are not located on a straight linr. I t r r t ~ r , i , Ir , 1 , 1 1 1
the arc of a circle that can be drawn throuf:h I 111.111,111 ( I I I I I~I I I I I I L I .
this arc eastwards from Stonehenge t o ;I 13111111 . h 1 1 1 1 I 1 1 1 I (!1 ' 1 1 1 1 1 1 4
111

itb

~ l i l ~ l . ~ f ~ l

#11,

282

I;

l l''
1

l
I

1 1

~~

'

:m
I

'1

'~

iI

,l

II
,

from Stonehenge, Michell found himself pinpointing a further site at

Goring-on-Thames. Upon investigating, it turned out that there
once existed at Goring a temple ncar a river crossing of several prehistoric tracks. Were the circle to bc complctcd. ten such sites in all
would face each other around its circurnfrrcnce; and the centre of
the circle is just south of a prehistoric city o n Midsummer Hill in the
Malvern Hills.12
.
.
An interesting adjunct to Michell's disco verics is t:he subsequent
history of the middle site named by thc 1~'rinc
1 as one a~fthe locations
of the three perpetual choirs. For rhis is Glastonlm y , strongly
.. ' to which the
reputed to have been the very first site in n
nrltaln
Christian religion was brought. Tllc Clrristi;ln firit11 is said to have
been anchored at Glastonbury :I nlrrC I'rw yc;trs itftcr the crucifixion
and ascension of Christ. What i q in : ~ n yi.:rsr ccr1;tin is that Glastonbury became the first major ccnt1.r. ,,l ~ l i IrI ( . W rrligion in these Isles,
and held a prominent position ; I S : I U I~ol:~.;tic.,
rrligious and mystical
centre for over a t h o ~ r s ; ~ yr.:llb..
n ~ l ' I ' l r ; i t ~ l . ~ ~ t c , s rwas
l ~ uchosen
r~
for
this role cannot havr Ix=(.II . I ( t - i t l r 1 1 1 . 1 l . A t r . ~ t lion
i ~ of keeping the
energy flowing from t ll:ir r . \ r . ~ l ~ l r ~ ~ l ~. c -r ~t lt l j>t~ril~ril
point - energy as
a spiritual 'powcr sclpl~l
y' 11 ,I. I l ~ r -~ ; l l , i t. c i r ~ r l i c . ~ i.IIICI
~
;~dvancementof
I I ( , I I ~ t ' , r witli I 11,. o l r s t m 1)1'
~ the Christian
the nation - was st.l.t~r~r~,:l~
era. Indeed, tlrr. rlic )lik+. ( ; l , ~ ~ t c ) n lAl1l1c.v
~ t ~ r ~.~tllrr-rc~d
during the
Abbey's hcytl;~v1 0.I rc!:irirc.lr 1 1 1 Ilr:tycr ; ~ r i i l(.II:IIII 111orc intense than
'
any of wliic-h 1 11.
1 i l l thr Christi;~nworltl: ;~l~ror~nting
to at
1e:tst scvrr:~l111) I I I , \
rvcry day.
Rut f'in;lIly . I I I
P. It is a timeless esotc.ric I;IW of the flow
of rncrgy tI1:1t \ p i r . ~ ~ l1i 1i ~p~talways tends to atrr:lc.t 111t.opposition of
dnrknr!~.' 1 ' 1 1 ~ (.if'<-ctivcservice of individuals ancl nrovcments which
evil; thus
conr;iin li!;ht i\ :I tIirc.:.it to the very existencc of rl;r~icl;~ry
evil in ;III i t < ; IOI-I~IS sc.cks to perpetuate itself by t l ~ rc-xtinguishing of
thc liKht. ( ) ~ ~ t \ i i01'l r thc present, civilized socict y provided by the
West, in o r l ~ c .~~ ~ ; ~of'
r tthe
s globe and at other timcs in history, the
opposition of rvil 11:~sIxcn able not merely to tvkc the forms of
1,111 :~lsoof physical violcncc. And in this way
gossip and sl;~n~lrl..
there eventually c;inw 1 1 1 ~ .order by a military and totalitarian regime
for the ransacking, ili.;rolution and tearing down of Great Britain's
Glastonbury Abbcy .
And so the light t11:tr ill~tmineda nation went out. The saints
were scattered, and werc no longer able to congregate to offer themselves as scientific, self-sacrificing transformers of the Word unto a
nation and a people.
W e have now only the ruins to look back upon. But even these

'

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THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

283

CODA

have yet their secrets t o reveal. WCh:lvr John Miclicll t o thank for
the discovery that there exist certain clcar associ;ttions hetwccn the
account in the Welsh Triad and the dceply mystical tcxt of Rcvclation revealed to St John on the Isle of Patmos. 'l'lrc :~nglcformcd
between the lines linking Llantwit with G l a s t o n h ~ r:tnA
~ C;I:isr onbury with Stonehenge is about 144O, a sacred n ~ ~ t t ~wliicl~
l ~ r r (,(cxrs
: r ~ l t li l l
in Revelation both in the measurements of thc Nrw Jr~.lr\:~lrtn
the archetypal number of saints - 'an l~undrril iotr y : ~ n l l l o l l s
thousand, having his Father's name written in ~ l i r . i r , lfrr.(.l~r.:ctl\'
(purified third-eye chakras?). The total numbrr of I{ril i5l1 \ . I ~ I I I5 i t r
the three sacred choirs was 2,400 X 3 = 7,200: cxncr Iy o r i t * 11:11f# I T
14,400 (or one twentieth of the Biblical 144,001)). 'l'hi.. r~t~rnl)rrsurely did not occur by chance. Further, Michell intlicittrs III;II 111r
complete circle formed by the completion of the arc of thr t 11rr.1.\ I I I-.
has a radius of 504 furlongs and a circumference of 3. l hX I ' I I ~ ~ ( I I \ ! : ~ .
These numbers are an essential ingredient of the proportions 111 tlir
archetypal New Jerusalem of Revelation. They are also rn;tniI ccr rt l
in the traditional systems of metrology themselves, sincc tlir r:t~litr\
of the earth combined with the radius of the moon gives ;I IOI.II
figure of 5,040 miles; and a circle of this radius would 1i:rvr ;I
perimeter of 3 1,680 miles.
The number 144 also occurs in the Old Testament's account of
Solomon's consecration of the Temple into which the Ark o f tlir
Covenant was placed. There is
no more awesome a record
than this of the power of specific tones to invoke sacred energy from
heaven for the blessing and healing of the land.
Previously, King Solomon's f;~lhcr,David, in making preparations for the Temple, had divided his musicians according to thrir
service into 2 4 categories consisting of twclve in each category,
giving a total of 288.lZ6 Hcrr, thc 2 4 categories represent the d ~ l i l
yin-yang polarities of the twclvc Toncs of the zodiac, and the tnt:rl
number is therefore 1 4 4 2~.
For the consecration of thc l'emple itself, King Snloliillzr
assemblcd together a11 of the I,rvitical priesthood, the elclrrc, 1111.
heads of the tribes, and all the nicn of Israel. The accnilrll, i l l .'
Chroniclcs, conveys very t;tngibly the great hush anil n.r.cio.r.
cxpcctation which envelops the gathering as the Ark is I ~ r r ~ l ~ 1~1 1l l ~ r
Then comes that penultimately powerful moment whrrl 11ir 1 1 . 1 1 1 1 4 1 1
priest-musicians invoke the fiery Presence of the Onr :
1 1 1

And it came t o pass, when the priests wcrr t c l111r.1 r l l r I 11 I

place: (for all the priests that were prc\c.tlr w1.11.-. 1 1 1 1 t 1 1 1 1

111

11

114

#l

11111

CODA

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

c11ct not then wait by course: also the Levites which were the

'

l;

l ; ,,

I
l

!!,

'l
I;

'

singers, all of thcm of Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, with their

sons and their brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having
cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end of the
altar, and with them an hundred and twenty priests sounding
with trumpets;) it came even t o pass, as the trumpeters and
singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising
and thanking the Lord; and when they lifted up their voice with
the trumpets the cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised
the Lord, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth forever:
that then the house was fi.Ued with a cloud, even the house of the
Lord; so that the priests could not stand t o minister by reason of
the cloud: for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of G o d . . . .
Now, when Solomon had made an cnd of praying, the fire
came down from heaven, and consumed thc burnt offering and
the sacrifices; and the glory o f thc 1,ord fillcd thc house. And the
preists could not enter into tllc Iiousc o f the Lord, because the
glory of the Lord had fillcd 1111. I,ol-cl's house. ...
And the Lord : I ~ ~ N * : W
~I
10CSololnou
by night, and said unto
him, I have hc;~l.tl 111 y 111.;1ycl-,and have chosen this place t o
rnysclf for ( i r l IIOII..(- 01 : 7 . ~ ( , ~ . iIff , cI ~shut
. up heaven that there be
no rain, o r I I I I I ) I I I I I I . I I I L ~ tllc locusts to devour the land, or if I
send prstilt,r~r1 , a ~ ~ ~I I I~Y people;
o ~ ~ j if: my people which are called
hv my n;lnlc,. ~ ; I I ; I I I I~urnblcthemselves, and pray, and seek m y
f;~cc.,, I I I ~ I 1 1 1 1 . 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 tllcir wicked ways; then will I hear from
I~c;~vc.~l.
.111tl will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. N o w
111inc~ , ~ ( - V ~ I I , I II)c
I open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that
i:. 111,1tlt. I I I 111i:; JII;LCC. For now I have chosen ; ~ n dsanctified this
IIOII*,(., t 1 1 . 1 1 l i l y 1l;lme may be there for ever; 2nd mine eyes and
1ni11t.I I ~ . . I I Ia.11.1I11)c thrre

T h e Tcnilrl~.1 1 1 \t~lonlon and its use, then, provides the universal,

archetyp:il r l l , l l r . l r : 1 0 1 ,111 peoples and all ages Similar temples, where
'the Lc)rd'\ rvvs .111cl His heart were there perpetually' were
established in .cnt lc.111I\rit,tin, and the same could be re-established
today. In fact, 1111.1.r.. I I ( . .I number of hints in the Bible that the
science of the Worcl I I I , I ~ i~ldecdprovide the essential kcy for the
bringing in of a new goltl(.l~age.
W e can take, for cx;trnplc, thc book of Revelation. Revelation is
coming increasingly to be rccognizrd as being, in part, an allegorical
key to the events that arc to accompany the transition of the earth
from Pisces t o Aquarius. If this is a correct assessment, and I believe

281

i s , then the numerous references t o thc power of thc spoken W o r d

,lrlnot be mere coincidence. T h c scrvants :tncl s;tirlrs o f G o d arc
,l(.scribed repeatedly in Revelation 3s conilxitin~ cI;~rkncss with
, , o ~ ~ in
n da final conflagration of good and evil Ix*li)rc~ l l c *I)ir.tl~of a
!:I Jden age of peace and enlightenment :
II

...

And if:uiy 111,111 will l ~ u r t

For their power is in their
thcm, fire proceedeth out of their mouth."" . . . / \ ~ ~ t111c.y
l
ovcrcame him [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb. It.11t-I 4 )l 1 11(.
Christ] and by the word of their t e ~ t i m o n y . ' ~ "
I ; i ~ l a l lthere
~ , is described the final coming of the incar11.11
I O I I 01
Word :

II~.

... and his name is called T h e W o r d of G o d . And thc ; ~ r l ~ ~ i r * \

which were in heaven followed him ... And out of hi.; I ~ I O I I I I I
p e t h a sharp sword, that with it he should srnite [all cvil i l l ) I I I ~ .
nations.13'
liven as the Chinese believed each new age to begin with .L r1r.w
'I'one which sounds the age's key-note, so too does Revelation seen1
1 0 imply that a new inundation of the earth with the W o r d will
t orne forth, which will be stepped-down fully into the earth by thc
. ~ ~ . c ~ h e t ~1p4a4l , 0 0 0 saints, for the full manifestation of thr
Acluarian age:
And I heard a voice from 11c;tvcn. as thc voicc of many waters.
;uld as the voice of a grcat 11-lundrr;itnd I heard the voice of
1l;~rpersharping with their h;~rps:
. and no man could
And they sung as it wcrc ; I 11c-whang
I(.;~rnthat song but the ht~ntlrc.tl ;Incl forty and four thousand.
\r\lich were redeemed from I I I ~c~: ~ r t h ... , These were redecmr~l
110111 among men, being thc first-fruits unto G o d and t o 1111.
l ..1111\.).
/ \ I I L ~ in their mouth was lo1111dn o guile: for they arc wi111tr111
l.l,lll . . , l 3 2

..

I I I I W 'y.~I~~l.;~rccl
with thc dccpcs~o f meanings is that lint*: ' A ~ \ t l\lrl.r;
,I< I/
;I new song' (my italics)! The 'new \OII!:'
I-.
(4
Il..rh (11 councl it1 both Ncw Agc music and in c n l ~ ~ ~ i . i . ~I rl t~. yi Ill\ ,I I I \ ~
111vt11.;11ions. O n e of thc most important thinss ; I I ~ O I I I 1 1 1 1 % 111 M
~II!!
I - , it, ~.c.l;\tionsl~i~
W l i h tllc Ncw Age ay n fullv ~ n , ~ ~ ~ l I r !:rbltlr.~~
. , . ~ t . t lr.l.1
'.1111!:

1 1 1 4

111

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

111 t ivilixation. O f the new song and the N e w Age w e must remind
o111.sc1veswhich, according t o the tenets of the ancient mystery
schools, will be theparent, and which the oflqring. For the power of
music and the enunciated W o r d rules everything, Vibration being
the creative force of the universe. Therefore the N e w Age cannot
come first, somehow arising spontaneously, and the new song
appearing only as a result of it. Rather, it is always the new uses of
sound which lead the way into the new era. T h e N e w Age can only
ever come forth as a resalt and oflspring of N e w Age music and the
intense, devoted practice of the science of the spoken W o r d .

THE HALLOWED CIRCLE OF THE AUM

W e approach now the conclusion of our study of the secret power
of music and sound. And yet, bcfore closing, one cannot help but
wonder: what would be the cffcct - personal and planetary - were
the sacred science of the W o r d , as practised in the three choirs of the
saints of ancient Britain, to be resumed torhy? W h a t magnificent
resurrecting energies might not this I~cstowupon the British Isles,
and upon every nation upon earth! I n ;III iigc whcn s o many potential catastrophes threaten with an inln~inc.nt lrrcscnce - terrestrial
upheaval, world war, totalitarianism and st;~rv;~tion,
to name but
four - it may be of great significance that thc ;inc,icnts believed the
powcr of the W o r d to be capable of avcrting ;ill such occurrences.
And even if any of these eventualities conlr t o pass - a global
economic collapse of large proportions ;~ppe:iring particularly
likely for this decade as I write in early 1983 - what might not a
rebirth of what John Michell called 'central powrr station(s) of the
whole country, aansmitting throughout the n;ition the current of the
divine word' bc able to accomplish for the swift resurrection and
stabilization of a new era of peace, prosperity ;ind I>rotherhood?
O n e of the final conclusions of our study must be that the secret
power of music and sound should not be sccrct at all. As of old,
when the correct, studied use of music and verbal formulas created
and sustained grcat golden age cultures, s o too can and should this
power be used once more. That which was, and then was not, must
be again.
I n fact, the return of the science o f the W o r d t o the carth seems
already t o have begun. W e have noted previously the importance
with which the ancients regarded the t w o solstices and thc t w o
equinoxes of the ycar. And it is at these times that El Morya has
called for conferences and gigantic decree sessions to take place in
our age. These conferences and group-decree sessions, attendcd by

llll,~ls;~nds
from all o r c r thc world, ;IIT 11ow hcIc1 .it rhc four cardinal
of the year, as well as :L(oth(.r tin;::\. I I I 1l1c [Ul~itedStates
(wl1c.1.~
the largest :ind central g ; ~ t h c r i ~; iI ~~ C\I1c.Ic1) ,~ncl, ~ I s oin other
~~.llions.
Let us therefore clc)bc wit11 1 l l c 8 wol,cl\ 0 1 ' }!I Morya
lllllls~lf:~

Of such import has bcen the coming-to!:c.~11,-I 1 1 1 ' t l r + \ ~ o l : . r ~of

~ , light
clown through the ages that whcn r h c % I I I I I I I I ~ I I , I ~ ; I ~ I I I owits
IIs~~
c~)l~Ir.jc.ncr..,
101 111c
founded, I set the pattern of thc clu;~rrr*r.lv
10111.
anchoring of the cycles of :hc y r ~ r - .I<? (11111111!: II~!!I.I~I~.I.
times a year to give and recrive, ch181;1\( ) I I 114.. l b . < c.llclrxl I I I . I \ ~ I . I . ' ~
render an incomparable service. t o the ( ; I , ~ ; I I \%'l111 I * I ~ 1 1I1 Ilr~rliootl.
If you
behoid our quartc.r!y ronlr.l.r.nc r = I T O I I I I l ~ rI I I I I ~ . I
planes, you would obszrvc how t h r chvl;i\ I ) ~ ~ i l It ll ~ IrI I I I c.1 ~r.ltli l l
the
plane by their dcvr~[ionh;111cl l ) ? r l ~ c .rrrlc.llr~~.h.
~~
.III~I
how hierarchy l o w r r ~a grid t11,it i \ the 111.111<1.1l.i t i l l I I I . I I I l , ( ... 111
the ethcric plane over thc phlrsic;il pl;~cr.w11c.r-rI 11,. !.I..-.I.. I l i ' l l l
The mandala is like a snowflake - 11nic111r.
I I I ir., C!I..,II:II.
11r4\,c.l
seen before, never to appear ag;~in ... I ; , . l t l l I ~ ~ I I It l 1I. 1I1 . I , ,
scheduled and each dictation th;ir is ,qivc-n Iill.. I t r I 1 1 ~ 1 11 I * 111
I 11,.
I I I I ~II..III(
,. 1 \ 1 1 - 1 1 I I O I I
mandala, and the application o f t h r srl~tic.l~;s
of thc sacred fire that can bc. rclc;i\rd i o r l r v I , l , ~ r ~ nI
Our conferensrs are hcld 1;)r I I I C , 1111.11111!: 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Y I , 1 1 1111.
y
- r
i
i
I I I I I
I
I I ..I
1 1 r. .111(1
, ~1 1 1~1 . ~ 1 1 8 1
I I I ~c o 1 1 alltumn equinox. The pllvsic . I I I I I . ~ T I11,
ference and the l i g h ~rc.l<..c\r.tlI I ' I ~ I I I ~ltr.I I I I . I . 1I1I1 1I . 01 111~. , i t
the
of the srh;lcc,rl 1,. 1 1 1 1 . 1 1 r . \ l ~ . ~ ~I ) y~ ~.I\c('II~!~'~.I
l ~ . ~ l ;IIIII
lln~~scendedbeings si'rvill!: 1 1 l ! : v r l l r I . I I I l,,. r ~,~,fc.rc.nc.c.\
hrr thc
fulfillncnt o f a cosmic I'LIII 1 5 , F,, 1 1 8 ' 1 1 1 1 1 . I * , I! I,. 111 Ilr.;~vcll.
v
Whenever pc)ssiblc, v011 . . I ~ ~ I I I I I *I . ~ . I , I , 1 1 1 , o l ~ l ~ o r ~ u ntc;i t attcnd
I I I , , l 1 1 I I I I C ! I L I ~ I ~possible
C
thc
such a conference. FVh,rr ',, ,111 1 1 I . ,
impossible through thc ;tlc-l~r.t~~\.
1 1 1 1 1 1 ~ 1 1 11 1 i o 1 1 t o y(li1r ow1.1 G o ~ l
Rcing. Not onl; a r c r I ~ . - . t , I I , I I I I I I * I I L ~ . ~ the most impcrt,~nt
rxperiencc of a lifetime 111 1t.1 ! I T \ I , l I Ilc c.xp;\nsion of consciousnc*\\
l
in pour worlcl. I N I I
:tnd the transmut;irion ( , I r ~ l ~ r c i l ts~~t,stance
your willingness to wrvc . I \ ,I co-ordinate on c.:~rtli I;,[ 1111.
I
hierarchies of light will earn !or. you a momentum of ~ o o r ~l , I l11.1
that you can ill afford t o bc wirhout.
G o d nceJs man and man needs G o d . Thic i\ tllc I . I W 1 1 1 1 1 1 r .
hallowed circle of t h r AUM. And when y o u I l r l t l ~ I I I I I ' ~ I . I I
t

1 1 1

l1

11c.1

111

1 1 1

iCopvnghr 9 1983 byCHURCH UNnrERSAL AND TRIUMPHANT, IN(

. l l\ ;1.I I V I I llnn,1I )I I .
hlonrana 59047. All Rights Rcscrved. Reprinted by Permission. Frorn 17~1r I w f ,~i d t i + ,1!1fh
by El Moq-a. pp. 77-8; 1976 ed.

?MU

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

s1;tnding in that circle, ever-widening, that is formed for the final

relcase of the Lord of the World to the devotees at the conclusion of a conference, you will know that all 1 have told you is
indeed true; and by the thread of contact with hierarchy which
you have established, your life will never be the same. l

Further Reading

(And Listening !)
'This list is designed not simply to go over material which 1111. 131-r-t V
ding pages have already covered, but t o expand into furtllcr I r.1.11t.11
areas of music and esotericism.
On Beethoven
Why 'On Beethoven'? Though the subject of Beethoven - lllc I I ~ . I I I ,
[he music and the mission t o which he set himself - has not hcrn ;I
1)rominent part of this book, a study of Beethoven is aau;tlly ;l11
ltrchetypal musical experience. For Beethoven himself was :In
;irchetypal spiritual artist. In studying the music and Iifc ot'
I3cethoven we actually attune ourselves to much broader issues - tllc
cwential spiritual philosophy behind all good music; the necessity
Ii)r altruistic motive; the struggle between purity and error in thr
Iwrsonality of the artist himself; how music can be used to
sl>iritualizethe race, and what kind of music does this. Beethovcn
was quite aware of the power of music, and in his life story and
works w e see how supremely he put this knowledge into practice.
Beethoven, His Sjiritual Derelopnren~by J . W . N. Sullivan (firsr
l ) t ~ l ~1927,
.
now in
edition, by George Allen & Unwin,
I .o~ldon).The most author;~titivchook on the subject of its title.
I I i!:llly readable and quite short ( 1 2 7 pages), yet full of penetratin,t:
;ll..i!:ll~ into the spiritual aspccts o f I<cc.thovenand music in gencr;~l.
Iirv*/hoc~en
and the Voice o/' Got/ by Wilfrid Mellers (Fahrsr S,
I .ondon, 1983). his I,ook is a companion volunlc. 1
Il&r(-h
and the Dnwre o/'God, by which we can br crrt.1111 I
I I r ~l t t . ~ l i ly . Sure to become a key tcxt for a deeper u n d c w t ; ~ ~ t c l ~ l ~ ~ :
rl~c.\l>il~i~.~l;tl/mmotional
mcanings behind the notes of ! l c ~ r ~ ~ l t l l \ ' l ~ ~ t ' ~ ~
~ I I . Iworks.
~ I I Mcllers analyses the music in great r l r . t ; ~ i l , I I I I L I ~\~. ( - l ,
t t o ~ r .t ~ ~ - n o t rn:tking
c,
this title more suitable for hc wlict I 1..1t1*.
11111..11
I I I , I ~ Itor 111c1;1y111;1n.
\ - l y Marion M . Scott (1. M . DCIII
t% \ ~ I I I - , , I . I ~ I I ~ I I I I I ,
II(t~//)oa~n
11

t t

111

.ltN~

1') ;,l),
Quite possibly thc best onc-colunic work ;iv.~il;tblco n
bc.c,~llovcnas man and mu\ici;in. AI intelligent introdtlction to thc
.;ubjcct, but without being over-scholarly. Marion Scott sprinkles
hcr pages with a good deal morc h c x t than is oftcn t o bc found in
st~ldiesof composers.
Beethoven's Nine .Symphoities Covrelaled 2ci1h /he Nine .Sjiri/ztu!
~\/Iy.iterie.vby Corinnc Heline (J. F. Rowny Pt,css. Santa Barbara,
1971). New Age writer ~ o i i n n eHelinc examines the esoteric
aspects of each of the Bcethovcn symphonies.
O n Rock M ~ s i c
R o d andRok: The Impact ofRock MusiG 012 S e l f a n d S ~ c i e by
t ~ David
Tame. Available from Veritas Publishing Co., P.O. Box 20, Bullsbrook 6084,
Western Australia.

The Mannit Minstrels. A Handbooh on Commzinirr.Yubversion ofhftlsic

by David A. Noebel ( 3 6 4 p p , American Christian College Press, Tulsa,
Oklahoma, 1974). Thirty-nine chapters and six appendices include:
'Communist Use of Hypnotism'; 'Disrtihurion of Communist Records in
the United States'; 'Rock, Drugs nnd rhc Rr;~rlcs';'Rock and Revolution';
- Broadszde Axis';
'Communist Subversion oTFolk Mu5ic-';"I'hr .Y/r/!; ON[!
'Spiritual Implications', ; r l i t l '( ;11i1Ir1 1 ) A( I ion'. hl;y I~(.difficultto get hold
i r i r to~ lie
~ publishers, or to
of in Europe, rhouj:h, i~
Summit X~utliMinis~ric.'
~ : ~ I I I I~ion
: I ofwhich Noebel is
the director), P,( 1. Itos 21
\, (;( ) X O H ~ O , USA.

@ T i ~ fI ) ~ I Y;\l /,\I( /)/I*(/In 13017 l d ; ~ r s o(~lhl ) l > l ..lr.;on hlinistrieq.

Box L(>-IIX, I)c,n\jc.r. (:olor;rtlo. 1973). NOI I;II. I~rliindNocbel's
l,ook .ill r l ~ ~ s ~ l i 1x11
~ y . I c ~ sdctail. Larson wrilr.\ (ro111 knowledge.
I I ~ I 111);
\ IW,I.II
.I 1.1 )c.k 311it;iriYt hi~nsclf.But ;~g;rili,tlif'Lci11t to obtain
tlii., .?1t11.
(11 r l ~ c . i\rl.~ntic~ o if. interested, try o)111~1c
I il~g
the publishcr.
C I ~ ; I ~ I111,
, ' II I ,I ~. I ( . : 'Amcrian Aura'; 'British ~ - I ~ . , I I ,'~S' ;o ~ ~ n\'Lravcs
d
and r l ~ c . l'..v( I l r * ' ; 'l<ody Blows'; 'Dangers of r Iic I );ilicc': 'The View
':
Keynotes'.
From r I I h~ l ) ,~ o ~ i l l o n c'Spiritual
From the Summit Lighthouse
Summit Ligh~lroilschooks and cassettes are available from: The Summit
Lighthouse. Uos A . I.ivingston, MT 59047, USA.
The G r ~ n tM'l)/tr~Ilro~l~erhood
irr the Culrrrre. Hirror3, arid Keii,ion
of America by E l i ~ . ~ l ) cClare
r l ~ Prophet. 1 9 7 6 . This is actuallv a
book of world-wiclc sig11ific;tncc. An introduction p a t e,~i.ellrt~r.~
to
the subject of the Grr..l~ White Rrothtrhood and tlicir work. yet
also much morc than :in i~~rroduction.
Contains morc than coulci be
summarized here, i n c i u c t ~ n ~;i chapter containing information
nowhere else available on New Age astrology. Also an introduction

291

FURTHER READING

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

11ie science of the spoken W o r d . Onc* of t-hc niorl remarkable

I ,I roks I have ever read.
Prayer and Meditation by Jesus and Kuthrlmi, I ')OX. l'lic latest
r.~lilion also includes a sizcable section on the givi111:0 1 dynamic
tl~.c.rees.A handbook, therefore. on the threr n i ; ~ j o .~I ... ~ ) ~ X : I So f the
pr,itice of the spiritual life: prayer, meditation and ~ ~ I I , I I I clc~crrcs.
I I ~
\Written by Masters of the Great W h i t e R r o t h e r h o o ~ ~ .
The Science of the .Spoke:en Word, M a r k and E l i x , ~ l ~ cI-'~~lo~~ ) l ~ c t ,
. I I I I ~ 111rII<,C
1083. The standard work on the scicnce cif invoc:iticr~~
r '1- dynamic decrees. Includes much instruction on t l ~ (VII
* 11t.1 I I . , I I ~ l
\lrluring flame, and essential key for the purificxtio~~ . . ~ ~ I ,111cl
\ I )cicty.
The Science of Rhythm far the M a s t e ~of the 5ncr(,'/ /iwr~:r:ic,\o/
I .if;.; Uses and M isuses of the W o r d in the M zlsic of Ei/.v/ li~rl/M'CSI
Illizabeth Clare Prophet, 1 9 7 8 . Boxed set of t w o c ; t ~ s t ~ t l c( \7
I~ours).Includes musical examples.
The Call of Camelot. The orchestrated tone poem composctl Iy
Norman Thomas Miller is distributed in cassette form by the
Summit Lighthouse. Besides the title-piece mentioned in the. Coda
1)1'this book there is also an hour of further music. Performed by
I :xcelsior.

11,

111

By Cyril Scott
Music, Its .Secret Inf7ue?zn Throughout the Ages. First p p e r b a c k
(,Jition by the Aquarian Press, Wellingborough. 1 9 7 6 . T h c Initiatc
lxnks are published in Great Britain by Routlcdgc Rr Kcgan Paul:
i n the USA by Samuel Weiscr: The Initiate, .sotr,~lmpresrions of a
(,tljat So141;The Initiate in /he NP,'~World; The lnitiafe in [he D a r k
as mentioned in the C n d a under the heading 'Cyril Scott,
';,hc Father of British Modern M ~ ~ i i c "(The
.'
Initiate books arc. stil!
I~t~l,lished
anonyrnouslv, accrcditrd to 'his pupil'.)

cyi/e.

Other Uscfi~lBooks
l ~ r Hidden Face of tMlrrir l ) y I-lerbcrt W h o n e ( G o l l a n n ,
Ion, 1974). Also: The .Si,,pl~ri!~
qt'Pla~ingthe Violin. Each a
01' 'Zen of musical p c * r I ' o ~ . ~ ~ ~Important
. ~ ~ l ~ e ' . reading for the
~ ~ , ~ l l ~ - i n ~practisil~g
lined
n~\~\ic.ian,
but also absorbing for the
I ; I I ~ c ; ~ J c rHerbert
.
MJhonc- Il;ts thc ability to word thc most
vbolc~.i<01. subjects in such ;L wily its t o make it appear sensible and
cll~viollsto cvcn thc most sccptic;illy-minded.
Tlrr Golrlet7 1300k of 1,tfi by Azclda. A beautifully poetic and
ilt.ri'ly r ~ ~ y ~ t i ctrestisc
iil
on the seven Toncs and thcir 49 subdivi\ ~ O I ~ S I. ,Lg~t,ldrecommend it, except that although it was written in
111v I 920s. this 190,OOO-wc-)rd rn;inuscril>r, unlike anything else in

,'v,'

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

world literature, has never been published! However, booklets of

cxtracts are available from: M R G , Archers' Court, Hastings,
Sussex. England.
Thought-Fms by Annie Besant and C. W. Leadbeater (Theosophical Publishing House, 68 Great Russell Street, London WC1 B
3BU). Several Theosophist clairvoyants have written about the
non-physical structures which music creates on the inner planes. This
book includes a section on these music-forms, and was the first such
study to be written. Besant and Leadbeater say that music has two
effects visible to the clairvoyant: a radiation of spiritual energy
which goes forth in all directions, and a music-form which remains
over the location concerned for some time afterwards, exerting an
influence on all who happen to be there. 'Each class of music has its
own type of form, and the style of the composer shows as clearly in
the form which his music builds as a man's character shows in his
handwriting. Other possibilities of variation arc introduced by the
kind of instrument upon which the music is performed, and also by
the merits of the player.' Thrcc p;lrtic~~l;tr
music-forms are described
in detail, with colour platcs of c.;~cIi;rllcsc Iwing from the music of
Mendelssohn, Gounoit ;111cl W;t!:tlc.r.
Fantasia. For ; t ~ ~ ~ l w~ lo~coI lI ; I~L ~ I ~ ' I !ii.(.ll i t , Illis 1940 Disney
production is n IIIIISI ! /\ sl1llc.1.11I ~ I , I I . I . ~ ; I ~I>CIW(ICII
C
the visual and
sc.clilcllc,rs (not t l ~ cMussorgsky or
musical arts. M OSI I 11 I
Stravinsky) arc w l l . ~N~r w .Agc cirlt.m:t was i n t c . ~ l t l ( dto be!
Mll.rir T I I P ~ ~ I.'II INYI,V JA n/lruln~ycompilctl Ily Lionel Stebbing
(New Knowlrd,qc IZooks, PO Box 9 , Horsll;c~l~,
Sussex). Music
ther;tpy Tot, sllc:c,ificillnesses, and for handicapped children and the
c:ldcsly. M~~:tit,
in child education. Outline of a ncw music therapy.

Reference Notes
Menuhin, Yehudi Theme and Variations Heinemann. 1 (1 7 2
Joshua 6 :1-20
Most of the major works written by both Aristotle ant1 I l g
Plato include at least several pages on the psychological ;incl
societary effects of music.
Portnoy, J d u s Music in the Life of Man Holt, Rhinrharr
and Winston, 1 9 6 3
Scott. Cyril Music, Its Secret Influence Throughout the Ages
Aquarian Press, 1 9 J 8
Blom, Eric (Ed.) Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musictans
Macmillan London, 1 9 J 4
Medhurst, W.H. (tsans.) The Shu King
Martens, F.H. 'Music in Chinese Fairy Tale and Legend'
Music Quarterly V I I I , 4, October 1 9 2 2
New Era Communiry Agni Yoga Society, 1 9 2 6 (transcribed
by Nicholas Roerich)
Rudhyar, Dane The Rebirth of Hindu Music Theosophical
Publishing House, Ady;~r,India, 1 9 2 8
Gulik, R.H. van TAPLore o/'/be Chi~leseLute Tokyo, 1 9 4 0
Oriental Music Vol. 1 of
Wellcsz. Egon (Ed.) Anriotl/ ~/II[/
'The New Oxford Histoy a/ Mtrsic Oxford University Press,
1057
I l (aline, Corinne Mllvil-: 'Tbrg Keynofe of Human Evolr~tioti
41-W Age Press, Santa Moliicn (undated)
It~c~llojaediaBritmltriii~ ( l 5th edition) Encycltrp;~r~~li.~
I \ I i~ ;~nnicaInternational
A,II>I.1 .A. van Chinese Music Shanghai, 18 84
S,~c.lls,Curt The Rzse of Music in the Anlirtrt IVor1,l. I..r,r
, ~ I I CW
~ F 1.M.
. ~ Dent & Sons, 1 9 4 4
S W 6)s cxamplc the books on Rrcthovc~l I i . . r ~ , r l 1 1 1 ~ l ~ r
I ;11rt11cr liracting section of the prcscnt lu )c 'k

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

2 7.
I

28.
29.
30.
3 1.

l1
l;

32.
3 3.
34.
35.

'l

3 8.
39.

/l

40.

'I

36.
3 7.

Heline. Corinne The Cosmic Harp New Age Press, Santa

Monica, 1 9 6 9
Hindley, Geoffrey (Ed.) The Larousse Encyclopedia ofMusic
Hamlyn Publishng Group, 19 7 1
Ling, Paul Henry Music in Western Civiliyation J.M. Dent
& Sons, 1 9 4 l
Quoted in Machlis, J. Introduction to Contemporary Music
J.M. Dent & Sons, 1980
Routh, Francis; Contemporaly Music, A n Introduction
Hodder & Stoughton Educational, 1968
Yates, Peter Twentieth Century Music George Allen &
Unwin, 1 9 6 8
Griffiths, Paul A Guide to Electronic Music Thames and
Hudson, 1 97 9
Also quoted in Small, ref. no. 27
Quoted in Btllletin of the American Cotnpo.rer.r' Alliance June
1952, and thence in Routh, rrf. no. 22
Small, Christophcr Mu.ric-.h ic/y-Er/r/ri?tion John Calder,
1977
Circus Febn~ary1 972, p. 4 l
Garr, DOUR'Tht Entll1.s~Sc;~l(.'i l l OMN1 3 , 6, 1981
Fieldcn, Thom:ts /M I I Y Z C rrr~dChrrr~~r./rrI vc )r Nicholson and
Watson (~lnd;~tccl-I932 ?)
Darwin, Cli;~rlcsThe De.rcent of M r r n , iznd ,Telection in
Relation t o .Sex
Kcndig, Frank and Levitt, Richxrd G . 'Overture: Sex,
Mat11 and Music' in Science Digest 90, I , \;111~1;try
1982
Kostclanetz, Richard (Ed.) John Cac4eAllc~iLane 197 1
Mcrrill, Sally 'Composing Computers' iri Science Digest 9 0 ,
l . J;~nu;~ry
1982
'Tc;~cl~ingMusic by Computer' in Mrrsic in Education,
quotccl in Small, ref. no. 27
Skinncr. R.F. Ryond Freedom and D<qziryAlfred A. Knopf,
New York, I 9 7 1
Podoisk~A4 u.sic For Your H e a l ~ hRernard Ackerman, New
York
Gilman and P:~pcrteMusic and Yonr Emotions
Larson. Bob T ~ Day
P Music Died Bob Larson R/linistrics,
Box 26438, Denver, Colorado, 1 9 7 3
Ingber, Dina; Brody, Robert and Pearson, Cliff p music
Therapy: Tune-up For Mind and Body' in Science Digest
90, 1 , January 1982

REFERENCE NOTES

295

'Mysterious Melody Malady' in Scietzn Di,qrst 89, 3, April

1981, p. 102
'Time 7 February, 1972, p. 45
Time 7 August, 1968, p. 47
Medical World News 1 3 June, 1969, p. 1 3
Time 12 April, 1968
Curtis, T. Olga 'Music that Kills Plants' Denz!t~rPOJI 21
June 1970
Day, Langston and De La Warr, George Matter in /be
Making Vincent Stuart, 19 6 6
Useful discussions on the subject are in Hilgard, Ernest R.;
Atkinson, Richard C. and Atkinson, Rita L. Introductio~10
P.ycbology Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, USA (various
editions), section on 'Genetic Basis of Intelligence'; and in
Butcher, H.J. Human Intelligerzce, Its Nature and Assessment
Methuen London, 196 8
Bandura, A. and Huston, Aletha C. 'Identification as a
Process of Incidental Learning' in Journal of Abnormal
Social Psychology 63, 1961, pp. 31 1-18
The Viewer and Listener Summer 1982
Brown, Roger Social Psychology Coilier Macmillan, 196 S
Crosby, David in The Rolling Stone Interviews Arthur
Rarker, 198 1
American Journal of Psycbia~vy9 9 , p. 3 17
I Samuel 1 6 : 14-23
Hclinc, Corinne Healing and Regeneration Through Music
New Age Press. Santa Monica
l'ontvik, A. H e i h dcrrcb~Murik Ziirich, 195 S
In Stebbing, Lionel (cr,mpilcs) Music Therapy, A NW
,.4ntholog New Knowlcdgc Hooks, 196 3
Kneutgen, Johanncs N
ge der Musiktherapie
I Iiisseldorf, 197 4
IC;~ilc~,
Philip the^ C r r ~I Y I i q c lYIu.~icOxford University
I ,rr\s, 197 3
I1r!:gic, Andrcw 'Music;~l Adaptations' The Tirrtrt
Ilr/rritrtional Supplemrtrr I 2 June. 198 1
E;c-~lll;~rd,
Daphne and Gilbcrtson, Moyna Tbr Mlt\rt t o
I l r l p Di.cabled Chi[dren Move available Fror~~1 1 1 ~
I ' l ~ v \ i o t hcr;~py Dcpt, Bray's School, Bray's 111 ).I,!, lit1
d
I I I ~ I ~ ~ ; ~ I ; I IFnglan
TI,
II
C;l~c.l'Iicrcl, Inlln; Virdcn, Phil; J u l l i ; ~ ~ i( i~~I ,~, I ~ I ~ - I .111tl
w~\l,:lrl,
7:rcvos Whme M f L ~ i f ?!A .$,l, / l l l l l , ~ ~l,/~ i\'l
/ l ~ ~ f ~ l l
A

, 1 1 7 7

/ , , / I I , ~ I ~ ~ ~ Vl, , ~; V~ l i n ~
, It V
~/ I

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

Shepherd, John 'The "Meaningv of Music' in ref. no. 6 2

Shepherd, John 'The Musical Coding of Ideologies' in ref.
no. 6 2
Noebel, David A. The Marxist Minstrels, A Handbook on
Communist Subversion of Music American Christian College
Press, Tulsa, Oklahoma, 1 9 7 4
Lawrence, Vera Brodsky Music For Patriots, Politicians and
Presidents; Harmonies and Discords of the First Hundred Years
Macmillan, New York, 1 9 7 j
Ouseley, Sir W . 'Anecdotes of Indian Music' in The
Oriental Collections 1 and in Tagore, Sourindro Mohun
Hindu Music From Various Authors (2nd ed.) Calcutta,
1882, I, p. 1 6 6
Shankar, Ravi; My Music, My Life Jonathan Cape, 1969
Prophet, Elizabeth Clare 'Sound, Life's Integrating
Phenomenon' in The Coming Rez!olzitiun L?, 1 , Spring 198 1,
Summit University Press, USA. This ;irticle is a condensa..
tion of a lccture g i v n ~by lili?;~lx-tI~l'soplict in Philadelphia
in 1980.
Hamel, P a r r Mich;~c.l'I'l~~ar,,r:lr
Mltril- t o !he Self: How t o
apprecidle r/)/r/I ' . Y / ) C ~ ~ P I I1'I tt~ll~ii
r ~ ~ ~ (rI iI.;IIIS.
ct
Petcr Lemesurier)
Compton I'r-vss. 1 0 7 X
Tirro, I;I*;LIII<.Iii~,::,,/I I.li.\~i~ly
J . M . I1rn1 cYc Sons, 1 9 7 9
Mons;isr;l~,Alicr English 'Music - Soc,~hing,Sedative or
S;lv;igc 2' :I~~cricnr~
Mctczlry Scptemhcr I 00 l , p. 4 7
P
of Rock I, 2,
Mil1;lr. I)ill 'Rhythm and Blues' in T ~Hidory
O r l ~ i sI'~~l.)lishing,
1982
M:rslwu) 1;trrdt.r de Mythologie
W;II51In, 1,yall Supernature, Hodder & Stoughton, 197 3
)c.nny. H;~ns Cymatics I and II, Rasilius Press AG.,
Swir~.r.l,l;~nJ
I i l . i t jof The T'ao of Physics Shnmbhala Publications
C;I~)I.;I.
(LJSA), I:rml;~na(UK), 197 j
Gl;tclrcwski. Andrew 'The Music of Crystals, Plants and
Human I3rings'. rcprinted from Radio-Perception September
1 9 j1
Murchie, Guy 7 ' 1 .Seven
~ ~ Mysteries oflife: an E.rploration in
Science and Ybiioiop!y Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston,
1978
Kriiger, Wilfred L)rl.c Unizlersum Singt Trier, 19 74
Andrews, Donald The Symphony of Ltfe Lee's Summit,
Missouri; Unity Books. 1966

REFERENCE NOTES
U L .

8 3.

297

Khan, Inayat TheMysticim of Sound Sufi Movement, 192 3

Govinda, Lama Anagarika The W a y of' tkje White Clouds
Rider & Company (Hutchinson), 1 9 6 6 (p/bk edition
197 3)
Polaczek, D. in Suddeutsche Zeitung 1 J Octohcr, 1 9 7 4
(quoted and translated by Peter Hamel in ref. no. 70)
Kayser, Hans Lehrbuch der Hannonik; Der bGrtnrlr Mcnscb;
Akraasis; Hamonia Planetarum and Orphikon
Doczi, Gyorgy; The Power of Limits, Shambh;tl;t IJr~l>lications USA, 198 1
Gardner, Howard 'Do Babies Sing a Universal Sc)rlt:il in
Psychology Today 1,f,1 2 , December 1 9 8 1
Brown, F.A. 'Persistent Activity Rhythms in the 0yslt.r'
American Journal of Physiology 178, 1 9 J 4, p. 7 1 0
Carson, R. The Sea Around Us Staples Press 1 9 J 1
Hauenschild, C. 'Neue experimentelle Untersuchungcn m m
Problem der L ~ n a ~ e r i o d i z i t aNaturwiss
t'
43, 1 9 J 6 , p. 36 1
Brown, F.A.; Park, Y.H. and Zeno, J.R. 'Diurnal Variation
in Organismic Response to Very Weak Gamma Radiatio~~'
Nature 21 l , 1 9 6 6 , p. 8 3 0
Takata, M. 'Uber eine neue biologisch wirksame Komponente der Sonnenstrahlung' Archiv Met. Geophys. Bioklimar.
486,195 1
Takata, M . and Murasugi, T. 'Flockungszahlstorungen im
gesunden menschlichcn Serum, kosmoterrestrischer
Sympathismus' Bioklimat. Beibl. 8 17, 1 9 41
Stolov, Harold L. and Cameron, A.G.W. Journal of Geophysical Research 69, 1 December, 1964. pp. 4 9 7 5-82
Nelson, J.H. 'Planetary Position Effect on Short Wave
7 1, 195 2, p. 4 2 1
Signal Quality' Electrical Et~~cineerhg
Burr, H . S . 'Ttce Port~liti;il and Sunspots' Cycles 234,
October 1 9 6 4
(;auquclin, M. The Cormic Clocks Peter Owen, 1 9 6 9
l l eirtzler, J.R. 'The Longcast Electromagnetic Waves' .Fcir~~li/ic American April 1 96 5
Wilson, Charles R. Jorrmal ofGeophysica1 Resedrch 7 4 , A 1 7 t . i l
1')09, pp. 1812-36
t l ic-her. Lucille C. Fate 1 4 March 1 9 6 1, p. 1 22
Strphcns, R.W.B.UItrasonics 7, January 1960. pl) 3 0 { l
I{ornig, Mary F: and Lamar, Donald 1,. .\X:v rrrr,l 'I'c~lc,\r~~r.
? X , ()ctohcr 19(34, pp. 2 14-15
,I/ ( ;{I[/
) I I O I (11 i n M cllcs~,Wilfrrd fltlrh ,it/,/ / / v l ) # / , I ,
I~;IIX.I
<'Q l::~l>c*r,
l 080

, 1 1 1 ~

ll

Ocsterley, W.O.E.: Introduction to Charles, R.H. (trans.)

The Rook. ofEnoch S.P.C.K., 1917

l . Charles, R.H. (trans.) in ref. no. 104
106. Leadbeater, C.W. ; The Masters and the Path, Theosophical
Publishing House, Adyar, India, 192 1
107. From information in Prophet, Mark and Elizabeth Climb the
Highest Mountain Book \, Summit University Press, USA,
1972
108. Miller, Norman Thomas (composer) The Call of Camelot
109.
110.

18

111.

1~

112.

113.

'l

114.
l l j.
116.
11 7.
118.

(see Further Reading (And Listening!) section of the prcsent

book)
Scott, Cyril The Influence of Music on Histoly and Morals
Rider & Company (Hutchinson), 193 3 (updated edition :
ref. no. j)
Eaglefield Hull, A. Cyril Scott: TbeMan and His Works
Waverly Book Company (undatcd)
Scott, Cyril The Shadows of .Filenit ilnd the Songs of Yesterday
Donald Fraser, Liverpool
Scott, Cyril The Grall~of Eros uttr/ '1%1(' Book of Mournful
Melodies vith Dream '/;.orn tIrr. litirt Donald Fraser,
Liverpool
His Pupil Thr 1ni11,rtc; .So?ttr I?r/p~r\.~io~~
of' a Great Soul
Routlcdgc k Krg;in I'.rul. 1 9 2 0
His Pupil Tkf Initi,~/(*
in the Nuer World Routledge &
K c p 1';1111. 1 927
Scott. C y ril 7'he Philosophy of Modwnirn~i~ its Connection
alith MN.~IC
Kcgan Paul. Trench, Trubncr Nr (:ompany
Hir I'ripil 7'br Initiate in the Dark Cycle, Rourlcdge & Kegan
I':iLll,
l OZ2
S c c r ~ t ,Cyril The Voice ofthe Ancient J.M. W;ctkins, 1910
Rcichrnh:~ch, Baron Karl von The Mystrrious Odic Force
( o r i ~I.> ~ ~1 IH44)
x Aquarian Press 1977

Rcvcl;itio~l'l :.l
120. Rcvcl.~rionI 2 : 3
12 1. El Mory;t 'l'llr Chela and the Path Summit University Press,
USA, l970
122. Prophet, Elizrhcth Clare The Science of Rhythm for the
Mastety of the Srrcr~dEnergies of Life; Uses and Misuses of the
Word in the Mtisir of East and West (see Furrher Reading
119.

I
I

12 3.

REFERENCE NOTES

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

(And Listening!) seciion of the present book)

Prophet, Mark and Elizabeth The Science of the Spoken Word
(see Further Reading (And Listening!) section of the present
book)

Isaiah 45 :11
Michell, Tohn Cig of Revelation Sphere Books. I97
- -

Revelation 9 :19
Revelation 11 :5
Revelation 12 : 1 l
Revelation 19:13- 1
Revelation 14 5 - 1

>

299

Index
Aalst. JAvan, 58
Acoustia. 18. 113. 114. 116.

117, 159.242-246

Aesthetics. 90. 103. 123.

127.134.144
Africa, 189-192.204
Ahata. 171. 172
Akbar. Empcror. 17 3
Amcrica(4 (scc also. Unitcd
States of Ammca), 30. 94.
100. 109. 111. 165-168.
177. 190. 204,265. 273.
277
Awahau. 171.172. 183
Anarchy (anarchic.
anarchistic), 3 1.40. 59. 9 3.
102,104,108,118
Andrews. Donald. 220
Anrias. David. 267
Anrhcil. Gcorge, 99
Apllo. 280. 28 1
Aquarius. age of, 29. 126.
239.284
Arabic, 227
Aristotle. 1 9
Ar~nstrong.Louis Daniel. 197.
I 9n
Arcrr~sion.2 J 4
A~i.1,204
A I h murir, ro in l+, axiom.
17. 120. 127
Airrnl rqrral art. 110; astral
a
I I D ~ I ? I I C W ,89. 90;
a*tr.tl~ I J I I ~U9,
A I I ~ ' I ~(.1~.1111l0~ical).
IB~
41.
4). 11, 14,1>1.134.233111

A~k~nrt~n.
( ;n;rltl. 241
AI~IIII(~),
1l K 1 ~ ' l
Ata~t~.~l~tv,
94. I 3 I
A I I I ~ 14
N ~+,, 244
ArrIt1.1, >'>l
Attre~,?!ft

Bach, Johann Sebastian. 20.

48. 65, 74. 75. 77. 78.92.
99, 103. 123. 130. 132.
141-143, 154. 217. 251.
259,271
B&, 26.160
Ballad, Guy W. and Edna.
275
Bandura. A.. 147
Bax.Amold. 133, 263
Bcatlcs,rhc. 149. 185. 188
Bcauty, 83. 87. 127. 128.
133
Bccthovcn. Ludwig van. 26.
45.48. 52. 74-77. 79. 80.
81. 92. 98. 99. 101. 114.
119. 124. 129. 132. 140.
154,188,216.259.261
Bchaviomkm. m
Skinnnianism

B m y . Chudr. l 8 8
Brrnstn'n. Lconard. 230
Bcsant, Annic, 265
B ~ a n s 174
.
Big Hum. 244
Blakc William. 1 13
Blavatnky. ~ r l c n aP.. 218.
219.274.27Y
Rlun, 68. 187-205
Bode. Joha~ln.237
Badc's I t w . 237-241
Boldm. R~ddv.190. 191.
197
RmJn., Pierrr. 1 1R
Rnhma(n). 173.201
Britain. 281)-ZR6
'Rmadhmt. Charln'. 267.
261
Rnrwn. Julicnnc. l l 8

GF.John, 103-112.122.
124.129.131.261
Ca1iTnrni.r. 109. 121
Carntmdia. h7
(:.t~nrrun.A Tr W 7 16

Capra, Fritjof, 2 18
Caribbean, 189, 190
Carlos, Waltcr. 103, 104
Carlylc. Thornas, 227
Cclrs. 206
Ccrcmony, 41. 172.21 3
Chakra(s), 183, 217. 218.
277
Chambm, Lnlic A.. 137
Character. 146, 147. 2 13
Chicago. 192.197
China. 14-17. 25. 30, 31. 3371, 77, 80. 91. 131. 156.
180. 181, 183. 206. 209.
212,216.276.280
Chladni. Emst. 216, 217.
240,246
Chohans. 217, 218. 262
Chopin, Frcderick, 132, 260
Cbmmatic scale. 47, 130
Chrysostom. Saint, 27 1
Civilization, 1J-18. 21, 56,
59.62.69.160,162,183,
187,203,246
Colc, Nar King. 200
Colcman. Ornmc. 202
&lour. 44. 149.222-227.
257.218
Comm, thc. 201
Communism. 69. 1 10. 163.
164.204.275
Computcr(s).
121. 130.131
106. 1 1 5. 1 19Confucius. 16.17.34.40.63.

72, 84.87.88. 148

Congrcarc. W i a m . 1 77
Consciousnm, 19, 49, 10. HI).
96. 99. 122. 124. 144.
152. IT$. 162. 170. 1 4 .
22 1
Cnnpct. Ali~r.771)
Cwtprr 0 . 1 h I r v . ? l l..)If*

C ~ V ~ T ~A. C
. I I~ I~CW0I C
,1 .
( ' ~ c d t a d ~ n.'%,
~,

4 1 , .Ir, 114,
. ' I f # , ,'!l,

! l l l ~ <'IO,! l ? ,

I E SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

.'?-L. 232,233,237
1 :rn nhy. Dnvid. 1 54
r :~~n~lingham.
Mcrcc, and
{l.lncctroupe. 1 1 1. 12 1
(:i!wcd Air. 1 19
Cyclcs. 38. 39
Dancc. 1 12. 17 5
Da jrcling. 2 17
Darwin. Charln. 12 3
David. 28 3
Davis. Milcs. 201
Dcath chants. 69. 70
Debtssy. Claudc. 79. 87-90.
260.263
Dccrcn, 278, 279
DcLus. Frcdm'ck. 1 3 3
Diatonic scalc. 92. 109. 179.
230.239
Didinson. John, 166
Diodoms. 280
Disncy. Walt. 8 I
Djwal Kul. 2 1 1. 2 56
Doai. Gyorgy, 228
Dodge. Charles. l l 9
Doolcys, the. 140
Drum. thc. 44. 1 1 0
Dvorak. Antonin. 10 1
Economy. thc, 46
Eddy, Mary Bakcr. 27 5
Egypt. 14.25. 30. 80. 116.
209-215.216
Einstcin. Albm. 2 1 . 7h. t l
Elgar. Edward. 126. I 3 i
Elohim. 2 I 3
Emotion.81, 110, 127. 117.
141-149
England (-~th).40. I 14 . I 34
Ennch. 2 1 1
E q ~ a rrnlprrnmrnl,
l
6 5 , 66.
211
Eqliinnxn. 74. 5 I. 286, 287
E<kirnm. 149
.
Evil. 17. 18. 11. 7 4 . ~ 1 )102,
l f f . IfiJ.212.21Z.?HO.
282
Evolution. 19
Existcnrialivn. LO?
Exprmsionirm, 90, 0 I
Fonla~ilr.Walt Disney
production. R I
Fiat(s). 2 13
Ficldcn. Thomas. 122. I r 2
Fifth. pdcct. 61.92.93. 248
Flctcher. Andrew. 19
Flosdorf. Earl W., 1 3 7
Flutc. the. 44. 226
Franklin, Bcnjamin, 166
Freedom, 166. 168. 202
Frcrmasonry. 16 1. 168
Frcy. A.H.. 247

Gamclan of Bali. 26. 101

Garr. Doug, 1 19. 12 2
Gauquclin. Michcl, 2 3 7
Gmesls. 207.208.216
Gcrmain. Saint. 265. 275
Gibran, Kahlil, 247
Gilbm and SIJUvan. 140
Ginsberg. AJan, 108
Gladzcwski. Andrew. 2 19
Ghstonburv. 281. 282

Golden-age aviliution. 17.

62
Good (-ncss), 17, 34. 35. 72.
73. 91. 119, 125, 127.
128. 135.111. 164
Gooseus, Eugmc. 264
Gmmod. Charles. 48
Grainger. Percy. 263
Grant, Cecil, 200
Grcat Britain, 263. 280-286
Grwt White Brothrrhmd.
2f5.262-265. 266. 271,
274.287.290
Gmrcc. 14. 17. 25, !o, no.
118. 156, 18'7, 181)
Grrrn. Rrnny. 20.'
I
?OH
(;rcpry ~ I Nyr5.1.
Grilli~l~t.
l'x111,105
ot h1n11, ,uI~I
Gro~sr'~
I~~(tronurp
h~nrrtam~.
4'). 62
(~11Iik.
K.11 VXI. 44
'1 I.II):, fu\tirt Moreward'. 26 l
Hi11c.y. Rill (;tnd thc Comcts).
201
Hall. Robm. 1 70
Halpm. Srcphcn. 12 1
Hamrl. Pctcr. 178,227,260
Handcl. Gcorgc Frdcrick. 77,
80.99. 132, 140. 110.
268
Hanson. Howard. 1 11. 202
Harmony, 14. 1 1. 23. 38, 39.
41.77.80.91, 93.97,
134. 173. 177, 179. 206.
214.234
Hamis. Wynonie. 200
I-laucr, Josd, 26 1
Haydn, Joscph, 74.77. 99,
110.114
Hmling. 92. 126, 151-1 19
IIrlinc. Corinnc. 88. 273.
280
H rrhcrt. Georgc. 2 7 1
'Hcrbcrt. Lyall'. 267
Hrrman. Woody, 97
Hicbcr, L u d e C., 244
Hierarchy. 271. 278. 287.
288

Hilarion, 271
Hillagc, Stcvc. 126
Hillcr. Lejarm, 129
Hindemith. Paul. 94. 9T. 261
Hippocrates, 156
Hippolytus. 209
Hoist. Gustav, 41. 133. 262
Holy Grail. 17. 262
Homer, l 16
Hooker. John Lec. 200
Hopkinson. Franas, 166
Hnangcbung. 10. 53, 15. 16,
170,211
H d , A. Eaglefield, 263
Humanism, 29.71.79.99
Hwton, Aletha C.. 147
Idealism. 73-71, 210
Imprasionism. 90.9 1
Indeterminacy. 106. 109. 129
India. 14.26, 30. 80. 141.
116, 170-186. 209, 256
Infrasonin, 242-246
Innovation in music. 18. 19,
66, 71. 76. 91. 188
Instn~rncnts,musical. 44.45.
4 8 - 6 7 , 71. 100. 101. 118122. 137. 141. 172. 189.
212
I~ltcrval.;.42.61-67.92. 137,
170. 183. 220. 228.229.
2 39.277
I I I I I I I I . 24.
I ~ ~l~7 ~2 ,
I~tv~aation.
42. 213. 285.
7H7
Iir1.111d.John, 133
I*.~acro~~.
Imnud. 129
Ivn. C:lmrla. 94-96
J w m , Mlck. 120. 153. 114

Ia~iary.Chnstophcr. 118
J ~ p l n67
.
1.111.27.68.96.98, 103105. 127. 187-204. 273
Jmny. Hnns. 216-218.240
Jrnrho. 17. 18
Jmr, Trim. I 2 0
Jnu* Chr~st.33. 14. 71. 89.
209.21 5.254. 271, 282
1r~h11
of the Crors. Salnt, 2 1
I(lhn thc Bclovcd. Satnt. 201.
21 5,231,283
Johnson. Robm. 195
Joshua, 17. 18
Kayscr. Ham, 227
Kcrouac*Jack, 8 1.108
Key. 41. 76. 81, 91. 93
Khan, Ali Akbar, 17 7
Khan. Imrat. 177
Khan. Vilayat. 177
Khatcharunan, h a m , 1 3 3
King. B B . 200

INDEX
K~n~alcy.
Waltm. 191
K jrr (rock group). 269

Krtnlrgm. Johanncs. 1 58
Knycr. Wifricd. 220
Rung. 17-61
Kr~thurni(also known as Koot
Hwmi La1 Singh and as the
Master KH). 268. 270.
271
Idng. Paul Hcnry. 90.91.
'I '4
1.1nguage. 148. 119. 176.
192.208
IjlPlantc, Skip. 121. 122.
131
1.1rson. Bob, 137. 138. 141.
290
1.cadbcatcr. Charles W . 2 1 1.
216.292
I.rd Zcppclin. 143
1
JTda, 200
Txbar. Franz, 114
1.cnin. Vladimir Ilyitch. 16 3
I.i\zt, Franz. 73. 77. 98
IJoyd. David. 11 1
I rrcicr. Alvin, 1 14
l.yrin. 194-197
I

--

'"C'

Maharishi Mahah Yogi. 12 5

Mamas and thc Papas. the.
153
11.
Mantra.211.213
Mary. Mothrr of Jaus. 27 1
Man. Karl. 90. 162
Mastcrs (of the Grcat Whitc
Bmthcrhood). 261.267.
271
Materialism, 13.28-3 1.7787.116,117.124.l2l
M.ithcws. Max. 129
Mrck. Nadada von. 8 4
Meditation. 40. 61. 106. 12 1,
170.182.262.276
Mclody. 14. 11. 19, 38.43,
82.91.93.97. 134, 173.
179.212
Mrrll~lrln.Ychudi. 14. 122
Mrw~p,tam~a.
17
M r ~ r m ~(-ship),
rr
274. 276
Mrw~.krn.Ollvlcr. 261
M~ltcll.Inhn, 67,281-283.

.'96.

Millcr. Nnrntnn llomas, 262

Mind. l 4 1 148.22j
Minuky. Mirrvin. 124
Mit~<rrclr.135, 116, 273
MOAT, 11-77.61-63
hlonrnrrat. Alicc. 199
h'..-~tvrrdi. Claudio. 156

136.112.193
Morya. El. 262. 274.271.
286.287
Mozan. Wolfgang Amadcus.
26.74.77.78.99, 11 3.
114.121.219.261
Music: church. 72.73;
classical, 73.76. 141.163;
country. 201 ;curativc
d f c m of. 1 16; of dapair,
87; cffccrs of, 28.63. 198200; d m n i c . 78.79.
102. 132; function of, 46;
hcldcntal. 27 ; mama!,
146: m o d m pop. 137.
185 ; motives for. 112-111;
mystical powcr of. 20.2 1.
25.46; the 'ncw'. 73-1 31.
143; New Age. 134.262.
281;objmof, 34.61;
of, 13-31. 61, 246:
scalc, 16; of the sphcrcs.
23,225.233-231;styla
of, 2 1 ; Tones. of the
twclvc. 18; usc of, l l 6
Mussorgsky. Modest
Petrovitch. 80-82.91
Mysticism of music. 41-46,
70.96. 124. 134. 173171. 259
Namc(s). 176,177
Nelson, J.H.. 231
Ncuhaus. Max. 1 18
Ncw Age, 121. 126, 127.
132
..N m Jerusalem. 283
Ncwman. Pncr. 140
Ncw Orleans, 190-192. 197
Nijinsky. Vaslav. 96
Nictccnth ccntury. 73. 76
Nocbcl. David A.. 161.290
Norm (of music), 16. 33. 40.
43.47.60.61.92. 129.
141.242
Novali3. I I 8
Number (and nummlogy):
onc.47.60. hl.212.213:
two. 47.14; thrcc. 48.60:
fnrs. 14; five, 47.60.61.
212,213:rolm. 18. 13.
60.61.209.212.228;
riRht, 48; rwclvc. 5 l. 17,
61. 106. 197.240. 2492 12; thirtccn, 54.2 13 ;
twcnty-four. 106
Odic force. 272
Olivcr, Joc 'King', 197
OM, 23. 37. 170-172, 174.
ONCE pnup. I 1 1
Orff. Carl. 261

Otis. Johnny. 200

Palnc. rhc~mx\.166. l 6 8
Parnm. Clrmcnc. 2 1 0
Patrkar.
P C ~ C O C Pand~t.
~G.lry.
.
22ti
178
Pcrlcln. I R7
P m ~ a I. l h
Pharlqm, 2 12
Phcrccratm. I f 4
Ph~Ulps.Jnhn. I 3
P h r t c d S d y . ?h, 136-141
P h e 1 a . 2 1 8 221.224.2?I
233
P~crcc.Giuscppe.
PI~ZZI.
John. 1292 17
Paces. 28 4
Plancu, 61,231-242
Plants, 141-145
Plato, 19, 127, 116, 188,
202
Poc, Edgu Man. 89.90 260
Pomcrana, Dr Martin, 2 3 0
Portnoy. Julius. 23. 122. I 48
Preslry, Elvts. 18 1
Prokofiev. Scrga. 261
Prophet, ELzabeth Clam. 176.
274-278
Pmphn, Mark L. 274-278
Pythagoras. 14, 116. 206.
208.214.219.234.248
Pythagoras' comma.248-2 14
Pyrhagorean(s). 2 3. 2 19. 260.
273
Qucchua Maya. 206,207

--. - -

hchmaninov. Serge. 1 3 3
Raga. the. 172. 177. 179-183
Ravcl. Maurice, 91. 260
Rays, the scvm. 2 17
Realism in music. 80-83.91.
101
Reductionism. l 3.28, 1 16.
124
Reich, Steve. l l 0
Rcichmbach. Baron van. 272
Retallack. Dorothy, 14!.14f
Rcvolutioo 71-87. 102. I I 4.
127,131,188
Rhythm, 14. 19. 26.41. 7fa.
94, 100. 134. 1 37.1 3').
113. 173. 179. 181. IH?.
189. 194, IQ', 701. I ' l l
Rigidity (in rnur~~
JI
dcvclopmrnr). l H. 1'1. 7 1
77
Rilcy. Terry. 104, l(\'>
Rimlky-K~brr~h,~~,
N ~ h l r l ,H~I ~ .
Ric~ral,1 4 , '17. I H')
H t ~ 11111*1t
k
, 1111, 10.1, 1 3 1 .
147. 1411. 141, 147. 111.
'

+f\'t

THE SECRET POWER OF MUSIC

I nn. I 90.202
Icctrrit h. Hclma, 271
I{r,rrich. Nicholas, 96. 271
Hogrn. Shony, 97
H~rllingStones, 98. 113, 114
Rnmc (-an). 30. 116, 189
Romig. Donald and M a y ,
241
Rosiauaanism. 260
Ross. Brim, 261
Routh, Eranas, 101. 108.
126,127
Rusria(n). 81. M, 97. 163.
164,271

Sachs, Curt, 181

Sadducca. 236
Shakespek. W i a m . 146,
233,234
Sak. Lee. 139
Samud. Book of, 116
Same, Jean-Paul. 102
Satic, Enc. 260
Saundcrs. Michael. 140
Sayancyev. 260
Schombag, Amold, 91-94,
121.126.261
Scbubm, Franz, 27 1
S c h u . Robm, 268
Scun, Cyril. 24.21.133.
110. 161.194.263-271
Scriab'in. Alcxandcr. 260
Saawn, John. l20
Serialism. 91-94, 1 1 3
Scx Pistols. 31. 12 1
Shanknr. Ravi. 1 7 1. 1 77
Shrn~.13
Shcphcrd, John, 161, 163
Shiva. 1 7 3
5host;ku;itch. Dmitri. 83.
101,133
Sihclius, Jean. 101, 133. 154
Sidard rcalc. 2 I I
Sinatm. Frank. 26
Singh, T.C.. 147
Sirim. 1 12
Skinnn. B.F..114. 117. l 30,
162
Skinnerianitm (hrhavir~urim).
111-118
Small. Chrinophcr. I OR. 1 29.
160
Society. 15.66.136-168.
174
Soft Machine. 104

'Solomon.
283.284
Solmim. 46,14.11.286.287
Sophodes, 99
Sound. 17-20.23-29. 3741.

232.236,241
Spcech, 120, 173-175. 213
Stcbbing. Lioncl, 292
Stcphcns, R.W.B.. 241
Stockhausm. Karlhcinz. 1 12114,131,261
Stolov. Harold L.. 231
Stonehcngc. 28 1
Stravinsky. Igor. 94.96-98.
269
Subomik, Morton. 102,103
Sultan. Gary, 2 19
Summit Lighrhousc, the, 274279,287,290.291
SW&, D.T.. 261
Synthcsizcr(s). 102. 103.
111,130
Tai chi, 47. 48. 60
Tartchanoff. Dr. 138
Tchaikovsky. Pctcr Ilyitih.
82.87, 188
T h e ~ o ~ h i cSociny.
rl
2 1 1.
2 16.270.274.292
Ihtrapy, mtlric!1n Hcalinl:
Thomrnn. Vlrgil. 101
Thnrcxu. Hcnry David. 29
'Ihorh (Hcrmn Tri.imc*rm*).
50.211
Tihcr. 226
Timbre. 44.41. 179
Tilnothn~sof Milctus, 188
Tippet, Michacl. 1 33
Titius. Joham D.. 2 37
Tonality, 76, 91-91, 162
Tones: in music, 3 5, 60, 102.
124,141, 178, 226; five,
16.224; the twclvc
Cosmic. 22. 37. 38.41
Trinity, 60.128.173.222
Trotsky. Leon, 163
Troubadours. 13 1
Trumholt, Sophus. 242
T d ( s ) . 22. 34. 73. 80. 127.
128.110.203
Tudor. David. 109
Twcnticth ccnnuy. 2428, 19,
187-204

Ultrasonics, 242-246

Unitcd States of America (JM

also. America), 197.262
Upanishads. the. 121.174,
221,231
Uricl, 2 13
Ur-song. 230. 231
Vanilla Fudge. 144
Varkc. Edgar. 79.99-102.
l l2
~ a i g h a nW&-, ~ a p h .
124,133,263
Vclvct Underground, 104
Vmdi, Giuseppe, 126
Vihrationfs). 22-24. 28. 37.

Virdcn. PM,l62

Visbnu, 173
Vogt. Douglas. 2 19
Voltairc. Francuis Mane
Aronet dc. 261
Voodoo. 110.111.189.190
W;t~ncr.Richard, 71-77.98.
U?. 134.114
Wal5h. Stephm. 122
W.~ltrr.Rmno. 229
Wnrrrn. Dr Joscph. 168
W.lshinpon, Georgc, 161
Wrlrrrn, Anton von. 261
W ~ I I I IHcrbm,
I ~ , 291
W ~ l l i a ~Hank.
n ~ ~ 201
W I ~ \ I )Charles.
II,
243
Wi\hart, Trcvor. 162
Witchrrafr. 11. 88
Wrrcd. rhc. 49. 12. 171, 214.
221-227.231.254; the
apnken. 274-286

Y q and Yin. 38.47.48,

223,283
Yarru. Petcr. 101.107
Yogrs. 173. 171, 177
Young. LMontc, 109
Zm Buddhism. 108.109,
124.261